Claiming that its leaders were being targeted under the guise of farm agitation, the Punjab BJP has alleged that its senior leaders were roughed up and held ‘captive’ at Rajpura town late on Sunday night, triggering protest.
The attack came on a day when protestors, claiming to be farmers, targeted deputy speaker in Haryana assembly and BJP leader Ranbir Gangwa’s car in Sirsa district in neighbouring Haryana. The police said the rear windscreen of the SUV broke as stones were pelted, but no one was hurt.
In the Rajpura incident, general secretary of Punjab BJP, Subash Sharma claimed that he along with other party leaders and workers were allegedly “chased, roughed up and held hostage” for over three hours after a meeting. “It was clearly a state-sponsored planned attack. The police were a mute spectator and they did little to rescue us,’’ Sharma told News18.com.
The leaders reportedly had to take shelter in a nearby house to save themselves from the unruly mob, though the police denied they were physically attacked. A police team, including two DSPs, was present with the BJP leaders, even as the Patiala DIG and SSP rushed to the town to escort them to safety.
Videos from Rajpura that went viral on social media showed angry farmer union members waving black flags and attacking a BJP supporter as the police tried to escort them to safety.
DIG Vikramjeet Duggal and SSP Sandeep Garg reached the spot and rescued the leaders before taking them to Patiala.
The top brass of Punjab BJP condemned the attack on party workers in Rajpura, calling it “daylight murder” of democracy. BJP state president Ashwani Sharma and national general secretary Tarun Chugh, in separate statements, said BJP’s political rivals had been throttling the voice of the party under the garb of farmers. Slamming the state government for allowing such elements have a free run, Sharma asked CM Capt Amarinder Singh to give strict directions to the police to throw such elements behind the bars.
