Firemen assaulted, vehicles damaged

 

COOCH BEHAR, Oct. 9: Agitated locals assaulted three fire service personnel and damaged two vehicles alleging their delayed arrival to douse an incident of blaze. Police and BSF jawans had rescued the fire fighters and sent them to Dinhata hospital. The incident occurred at Gitaldaha market in Dinhata last night.

 

Locals alleged that fire broke out at a grocery shop owned by one Santosh Ghosh at Gitaldaha market at about 9-15 p.m. but the fire fighters arrived there with two engines at about 10-05 p.m. only to pour water on the completely gutted shop. This aroused anger among the locals who manhandled the firemen and damaged the two vehicles.

 

On the otherhand, Dinhata Fire Service Station sources denied the allegation and said they got the information at about 9-50 p.m. and reached quickly at the spot. Soon after their arrival some locals started brick batting on them.  Among the 13 firemen that went there Mr Amiya Kumar Roy (leader), Mr Bimal Kumar Mazumder (fire engine operator cum driver) and Mr Jogen Ram Singh (constable) were injured during the trouble. Two vehicles were also damaged severely. But ignoring the attack the firemen started their duty of controlling the fire. Later, Police and BSF jawans appeared to rescue them and shifted the injured to Dinhata hospital.

 

A fire service station official said they had received more than thirty telephone calls informing them of the fire incident. They rushed to the spot immediately. He suspected that there were some inflammable items like kerosene in that shop. The wind too fanned the blaze, he added. []

 

Man killed

 

COOCH BEHAR, Oct. 9: One Faijuddin Mian (26), a resident of Karala village in Dinhata was gunned down by BSF jawans last night when he was engaged in trafficking out cattle crossing the Indo-Bangladesh border. Police said the incident occurred at about 1-30 a.m. under Karala border outpost area. []

 

Law violation in Tufanganj

 

COOCH BEHAR, Oct. 9: Trinamul Congress supporters organised a mass disobedience programme at the Tufanganj SDO office premises today. The agitated Trinamul supporters were demanding restoration of rationing system in Cooch Behar district and rehabilitation of the affected traders at the market in Tufanganj from where they were evicted recently. A few hundred people were courted arrest led by the party's district unit president Mr Rabindra Nath Ghosh.

 

Cooch Behar District Trinamul Congress vice-president Mr Niranjan Dutta declared that a mass gathering would be held on 16 October demanding settlement of demands of the affected traders of Tufanganj. A mahamichhil (grand rally) will be held on 30 October and a law violation programme will also be held on that day on the same issue, Mr Dutta said.

 

Meanwhile, Trinamul Congress supporters led by the party's district unit vice-president Mr Santosh Mukherjee too demonstrated at the Cooch Behar SDO office today. They also submitted a memorandum to the Cooch Behar Sadar SDO. Mr Mukherjee alleged that the general public are not getting the commodities at the MR shops. He demanded withdrawal of all fake ration cards, disbursement of the scheduled commodities on every week and measures against the corrupted MR dealers. []

 

Silent protest rally against police attack

 

COOCH BEHAR, Oct. 9: Citizens of Cooch Behar witnessed today a large rally different from others. There were no slogans. Demanding legal actions against the policemen involved in the attack on two media persons the aggrieved journalists organised a massive silent rally wearing black badges in Cooch Behar town. Not only journalists but also hundreds of citizens from various walks of society have participated in the rally. Ignoring incessant rain the rally started from Shahid Baag and ended there after walking along different streets in the town.

 

            Media persons from Dinhata, Mathabhanga, Mekhliganj, Changrabandha, Haldibari, Tufanganj, Cooch Behar Sadar, Falakata, Maynaguri, Alipurduar and other places came to join the rally. Many intellectuals and persons associated with different organisations and NGOs too participated the silent rally. Large presence of women participants was also noteworthy.

 

It may be recalled here that some policemen assaulted two pressmen - Mr Partha Chakraborty and Mr Ashok Dey - attached with a Bengali TV channel, brutally on Thursday morning when they were filming an act of extortion by some policemen from a vehicle driver who was carrying patients to MJN Hospital. Between the two injured journalists Mr Chakraborty is still under medical care at a nursing home in Siliguri.

 

Cooch Behar Press Club sources alleged that by suspending two assistant sub-inspectors the police are trying to wash their hands of all the crimes they did. The FIR lodged at Kotowali police station by a victim was recorded as a mere general diary (GD). They demanded specific legal action against the tainted policemen.

 

A mass signed appeal will be sent to the state Chief minister through Cooch Behar DM within a few days requesting the CM of his intervention into the matter. In that appeal the signatories will demand initiation of legal action against the tainted policemen involved in the attack on the pressmen. []