Firearm recovered from BJP worker at protest march

Kolkata: The police recovered a revolver from the possession of a BJP Yuva Morcha supporter during the march to Nabanna in Howrah on Thursday afternoon.

The youth, identified as Balbindar Singh, hails from Kankinara in North 24-Parganas and is believed to be a close associate of Arjun Singh, BJP MLA. Singh has been arrested and the investigating officials suspect that it was a plan of the saffron party to fire at someone in the melee and then blame the police and Trinamool Congress for the incident.

The BJP workers started pelting stones at the police after being stopped from marching towards the state Secretariat. It is alleged that despite police maintaining composure and trying to control the situation by repeatedly requesting the agitators to refrain from attacking, BJP workers kept on pelting stones and even hurled several crude bombs targeting the cops.

Provoked beyond measure, police initiated lathi-charge to disperse the mob and control the law and order situation. Several tear gas shells were also burst to disperse the violent BJP workers.

Meanwhile, when cops were chasing the saffron party workers in order to disperse them, Balbinder who was also running, fell down on the road and a pistol fell off from his pocket. The police officials immediately nabbed him and seized the pistol. A case has been initiated against the accused person. Dilip Ghosh, state BJP president said Singh was carrying a licensed gun.

TMC leader Firhad Hakim said: "BJP is not a political party. It is a party of the hooligans. BJP leaders should answer why a participant was carrying a gun at the rally."