BJP workers, police clash during law-violation programme

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP’s) national secretary and co-observer for Bengal Siddharth Nath Singh was on Thursday injured when police had resorted to lathi charge during a law-violation programme in front of the district magistrate’s office of North 24-Parganas district in Barasat.

A scuffle broke out between BJP workers and the police during a law-violation programme of the party here. Some party workers including Singh were allegedly injured during the lathicharge. 

On whether he was injured, Singh said, “There was a scuffle and the police used lathis in which some of our party workers were injured. I am also hurt,” but added that “lakhs of BJP workers are prepared for it”.

He said that BJP workers organised the programme to protest against the “activities of Jamaat-ul-Mujahedeen Bangladesh, deteriorating law and order situation and attack on women in the state”.

Additional SP Tarun Haldar refuted BJP’s charge and said that police did not resort to any lathicharge.

He said that 10 police personnel including IC, Barasat, were injured in the scuffle. The BJP national secretary said that they wanted to meet the district magistrate, but were stopped by the police who erected barricades.

BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya, who was present at Krishnanagar, said that party president Amit Shah enquired about the incidents and “I informed him of what happened”.