FIR against FB leaders, 52 arrested

 

COOCH BEHAR, Feb. 6: An FIR was lodged at Dinhata police station on behalf of Dinhata SDO, Mr Debaditya Chakraborty against seven Forward Bloc leaders and some activists of the party. They were accused with several charges including damaging and ransacking of government property, setting fire to police vehicles and a car of an ACJM, rioting and killing of a policeman. Confirming the lodging of the FIR the district magistrate Mr Rajesh Kumar Sinha said he is yet to receive the details of the FIR.

 

Among the seven accused leaders there are the secretary of district Forward Bloc Mr Udayan Guha, ex-MLA of Sitai Mr Nripen Roy, Mr Hiralal Das and Mr Sankar Dutta.

 

Commenting on the FIR Mr Guha said, "Police did what their duty! But everyone knows what was the role of us at Dinhata yesterday. Even today the police are taking our co-operation in Dinhata to maintain peace. But, the SDO lodged FIR against 59 Forward Bloc activists including me. Yesterday they arrested forty persons. The total number of arrested persons till today is 52 including the persons in hospitals. The dead persons were also shown arrest. Let the police do their duty."

 

When tried over phone the SP was not available to comment on the FIR and the figure of arrest.

 

Mr Guha claimed that there was enough provocation for opening fire yesterday and the police had created that provocative situation. He however said that there was no need of firing on FB supporters as the administration was aware of the law violation programme. Without taking measures to pacify the situation the police gunned down five FB men, Mr Guha alleged. []

 

Policeman dies, death toll rose to six

Bandh : MP arrested

FB, Trinamul teams visit Dinhata

 

COOCH BEHAR, Feb. 6: The Forward Bloc sponsored bandh passed off almost peacefully in Cooch Behar district today. No untoward incident was reported during the day, police said. Forward Bloc and SUCI supporters took out separate slogan shouting rallies today in support of the bandh.

 

Forward Bloc sources claimed that the bandh was total. District Forward Bloc secretary Mr Udayan Guha said fifty or more bandh supporters including Cooch Behar MP (Lok Sabha) Mr Hiten Barman) were arrested at Mathabhanga today.

 

It was learnt that the pro-bandh men damaged seven lorries at Ghughumari near Cooch Behar town this morning. Additional police forces were deployed in Dinhata and other places to keep the situation under control. Special IG (North Bengal) Mr Adhir Sharma is here since yesterday to monitor the situation.

 

According to police sources the District Police officially reported firing of 22 rounds yesterday on the Forward Bloc activists at Dinhata who came to participate in a law violation programme. But Forward Bloc sources claimed that the police fired fifty or more rounds Five of the injured died but four were identified till now. The killed four are - Niren Haldar, Indrajit Chakraborty, Swapan Mohanta and Pradip Barman, according to Cooch Behar (West) MLA Mr Akshoy Thakur. They failed to identify the fifth man because the head and face of the deceased turned distorted due to bullet injury, Mr Thakur said.

 

Cooch Behar SP Mr Anil Kumar said an NVF jawan named Krishnakanto Barman died of head injury at early hours of today. He died during sifting him to Siliguri in a serious condition. Yesterday Barman and about twenty policemen received serious injury when the FB activists attacked them at Dinhata, the SP claimed.  

 

Today, a team of Forward Bloc leaders including Mr Naren Chatterjee, Md Hafiz Alam Sairani and Mr Paresh Adhikary visited Dinhata and inquired into yesterday's incident. They met the bereaved family members of the persons who were killed in police firing yesterday. They also inquired about the health of the injured persons at hospitals in Dinhata and Cooch Behar.

 

Another delegation led by Trinamul Congress leader Mr Subrata Bakshi, Mr Saugato Roy (MLA), Mr Rabindra Nath Ghosh, Mr Niranjan Dutta and PDS leader Md Saifuddin Chaudhury visited Dinhata today. They visited Dinhata sub-divisional hospital and Cooch Behar MJN Hospital and inquired the condition of the persons who received bullet injury yesterday. They condemned the police firing on democratic movement. []