NEW DELHI: Authorities deployed hundreds of riot police and cut mobile internet services in parts of eastern India on Sunday after violent clashes erupted in at least eight states during a Hindu religious festival.

Police said one person was shot dead in the Nalanda district of Bihar state on Saturday after majority Hindus and minority Muslims clashed in the town of Biharsharif. This came a day after mobs fought running battles and set fire to homes and shops during at times frenzied public celebrations of Ram Navami.

India in the grip of communal violence

Hindu festivals regularly feature hundreds of people — sometimes brandishing swords, guns and tridents — provocatively marching through Muslim neighbourhoods with religious music pulsating through powerful sound systems.