Nitish Kumar's Patna Police kills protesting BJP leader
14 Jul 2023 12:26:20
Patna, Jul 14: The BJP has alleged that one of its leaders died after police in Patna fired tear gas shells, used water cannons, and resorted to a lathi charge to stop party workers from marching to the Bihar Assembly today. The march was part of a massive protest organized by the party against the “corruption” carried out by the Nitish Kumar-led state government.
While BJP MP and former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi claimed the party's Jehanabad district general secretary died due to injuries suffered in the "brutal" police lathi-charge, authorities at the Patna Medical College Hospital said there were no external injuries on the body. The police have also claimed that the lathi-charge and other measures became necessary as the protesters threw stones and red chili powder at them.
"Arrested by Bihar police in Patna. Jehanabad dist GS Vijay Kumar Singh died in brutal police lathi charge," Modi tweeted. The superintendent of the Patna Medical College Hospital confirmed the BJP leader's death but hospital authorities said he was brought dead and there were no external injuries on his body. They said only a post-mortem will reveal the exact cause of death. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai said, "Vijay Singh sacrificed his life for the rights of the people of Bihar and to ensure that they get justice. The state showed barbarity by ordering a lathi-charge and authorizing the use of tear gas leading to his death. The government should resign." "BJP Members of Parliament, MLAs, and workers have been injured in the hundreds and are admitted in different hospitals," he added. Nitish Kumar and Tejashwi Yadav have been at the forefront of efforts to unite the opposition and organized the mega 16-party meeting in Patna last month.
The BJP and Kumar have been at loggerheads ever since he snapped ties with the party last year and formed a government with the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress. After the rebellion in the NCP, BJP's Sushil Kumar Modi had said earlier this month that the party will not accept Kumar into its fold at any cost, even if he "rubs his nose" on its door.