Kolkata:
A man died in West Bengal’s Bankura district after being thrashed by a group, allegedly because his son had participated in the Cockroach Janta Party’s protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar. The victim’s family has alleged that the men who assaulted him belong to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party — a charge rubbished by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari.
CJP member Sheikh Abdul Hafiz’s house was allegedly attacked by BJP workers after he attended the Jantar Mantar protest and raised concerns over the poor infrastructure and mismanagement at a local primary school, the victim’s family alleged. In the attack, his father, Sheikh Mohammed Mafiq, 51, sustained serious injuries and died in a hospital later.
The Sequence Of Events
Hafiz travelled to the national capital on July 19 to participate in the protest against the NEET paper leaks.
On August 13, he visited the Karishunda Primary School and raised questions about the condition of the school as part of CJP’s ‘Fix The School’ campaign.
The same night, the group barged into his house wielding rods and sticks and attacked him. His father was also assaulted as he tried to save him.
They went to the hospital and were discharged. As they were returning, they were again assaulted.
The family has alleged that on August 14, they were confined inside their house by the same group. At night, Mafiq’s condition deteriorated, and he was shifted to the hospital with police assistance. He died on August 15 during treatment.
“A complaint was lodged with us at 1:45 pm on August 16. A woman alleged that at 8 pm on August 13, some people entered her home and assaulted her, her husband and her son. Her son and husband were admitted to Bardhaman Hospital; her husband passed away. Based on this complaint, a case has been registered at Indus Police Station under multiple sections of the law. So far, eight individuals have been arrested and produced in court. The complaint alleges an attack by five identified individuals and another 8–10 unidentified persons. However, no political connection to the incident has been found so far,” said Bankura’s Additional Superintendent of Police, Krisanu Rai.
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What The Chief Minister Said
On Sunday, Suvendu Adhikari said those named in the murder case were criminals and not linked to his party.
Eight people have been arrested.
“There is no BJP connection here. They are all criminals. Action will be taken according to law,” Adhikari said.
“It has to be investigated if the incident is indeed linked with the Delhi protest. In the FIR (First Information Report), the BJP is not named. In the FIR copy, the accused are called miscreants. The law and order is good here; hence, the accused have been arrested. Guards have been deployed at the victim’s house,” he added.
CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka condemned the incident and blamed the BJP for the attack. He announced that CJP workers will reach Bankura to secure justice for the family of the victim.
