Bhubaneswar: Odisha Legislative Assembly gherao protest by Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) activists turned violent when Twin City Police prevented them from marching towards Assembly. The Lower PMG Square here turned into a battlefield with the scuffle between the BJYM workers and the police officials.
The BJP Youth Wing activists were staging a protest over the assassination of Minister Naba Kisore Das and deteriorating law and order in the State.
Several police officials including an ACP rank officer a number of cops and several BJP Yuva Morcha activists were injured in the clash, which lasted till evening.
The Morcha activists tried to break the police cordon and march ahead to gherao the State Assembly but the heavy police deployed at the spot prevented them from proceeding further.
The protestors also damaged several police vehicles and some of them also tried to set police vehicles on fire. However, police successfully thwarted their violent bid. The police also rounded up several BJYM activists.
The BJYM demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for his failure to maintain law and order situation in the state.
Although a month has passed since the murder of the Minister, the police have not yet been able to unravel the motive behind the murder, said BJYM State President Irasish Acharya.
Not only this murder case, the Crime Branch was not able to crack any case handed over to, including the Mamita Meher murder case, the Mahanga double murder case and Pihu murder case, he alleged.
Speaking to reporters DCP Prateek Singh said that 21 cops got injured in the scuffle while some of them also sustained head injuries that is serious in nature.
The ACP of Zone-II, Cuttack, Amitav Mohapatra was seriously injured in the scuffle as the BJYM workers brutally beat him with sticks during the protest, he said.
“The protesters damaged a few police vehicles. They brought kerosene to set police vehicles on fire. It seems to be a pre-planned attack,” Singh told reporters, adding that action will be taken against those involved in violent activities.
Later, DGP Sunil Bansal along with Twin City Police Commissioner Saumendra Kumar Priyadarshi visited Capital Hospital where the injured cops are getting treated.
The BJP MLAs also raised the issue in the State Assembly. “Naba Das murder was a planned one. The Crime Branch has failed to conduct a fair probe into the case,” Leader of Opposition Jayanarayan Mishra said.
Shri Mishra also questioned Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s visit to Mumbai to receive an award instead of attending the Assembly session.
On the other hand, the BJD women wing staged a protest demonstration before the Raj Bhawan against the apathy of the centre towards the state.
Carrying placards and posters, the BJD Mahila activists including party women MLAs, sat on dharna near the Raj Bhawan.
They alleged that the centre had shown a step-motherly attitude in providing houses to the poor people of the state under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).
While the BJD Mahila Dal was staging a protest near the Raj Bhawan, the party MLAs carrying placards also protested inside the State Assembly over the issue.
The ruling party MLAs alleged that the centre has not released the required funds under the PMAY and deprived the poor to get the benefits under the scheme.