Police resorted to lathi-charge on BJP workers near Master Canteen Square here on Tuesday after the latter broke the security cordon in a bid to proceed to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s residence Naveen Niwas and gherao it.
Several leaders, members of the BJP Mahila Morcha and hundreds of party workers marched from the party state headquarters towards the Naveen Niwas holding banners and placards targeting the State Government over the suicide of the Kunduli ‘gangrape’ victim.
They were stopped by police near Master Canteen Square, following which a scuffle ensued between them and the cops which soon took an ugly turn as the police lathi-charged the saffron party workers after they broke the cordon, pelted stones and tried to move towards the Naveen Niwas.
Several workers of the party and some policemen sustained injuries during the incident. Many BJP workers were later taken into preventive custody.
Similar scenes were witnessed near the Naveen Niwas as members of the Mahila Congress tried to head towards the CM’s residence over the Kunduli victim’s death issue. Around 20 activists of the women’s wing of the Congress were detained in this connection.