Siliguri: Two arrested for heckling job aspirants from Bihar

Kolkata: Two persons have been arrested for allegedly threatening and heckling two CISF job aspirants from Bihar in West Bengal’s Siliguri, police said on Friday.

The incident triggered a political storm, with NDA leaders in Bihar denouncing the incident and demanding immediate action, and the TMC asserting that West Bengal believes in democratic rights of every citizen of the country and will never allow harassment of anyone.

Two persons, identified as Rajat Bhattacharya and Giridhari Roy, were arrested on Thursday night on the charge of harassment, intimidation and assault on two persons from Bihar, an official of the Siliguri Police Commissionerate said.

The two arrested persons are residents of Siliguri and are linked to a regional outfit, he said, adding further investigation is underway.

A purported video of the incident showed two youths from Bihar being heckled by a group of people, who asked the aspirants to produce their documents.

They accused the duo of trying to get jobs in central forces by producing fake domicile certificates of West Bengal, thereby depriving people born and living in the state.

As the video went viral on social media on Thursday, NDA leaders from Bihar criticised West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee over the incident.

Bihar Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Sanjay Singh also wrote a letter to his West Bengal counterpart

requesting adequate security for the students seen in the viral video. Singh also urged the West Bengal Police to provide an update on the inquiry into the matter.