Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
A 21-year-old man from Aurangabad district was beaten up by JD(U) workers and detained by the police after he threw slippers at Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar at a function in Patna Thursday. He claimed to be a member of the Savarn Sena and said that he was protesting the reservation policy. The slippers fell short of the stage.
The incident took place around 12.30 pm at Bapu Sabhagar in Gandhi Maidan, where the students’ wing of the JD(U) had organised a programme to mark the birth anniversary of Jai Prakash Narayan. After Kumar and other senior leaders settled on their seats, Chandan Kumar Tiwari threw a slipper which flew over the CM towards the back of the stage. Before police could understand anything, Tiwari hurled another slipper which fell short of the spot where the CM was sitting.
Tiwari, a resident of Khairi village under Mufassil police station limits, was then beaten up by JD(U) workers and detained. “I am against the discriminatory reservation policy that has been affecting upper caste youths’ chances of getting government jobs,” he said while the police took him away for questioning. Patna Town Deputy Superintendent of Police Suresh Kumar said, “We have been questioning him. He looks mentally unstable. We are gathering more information about him.”
Savarn Kranti Morcha and Savarn Sena along with several other upper caste organisations had actively participated in the recent bandhs called to oppose reservation. Aurangabad has a sizeable upper caste population. Savarn Kranti Morcha’s Aurangabad convener Kumar Saurabh told The Indian Express: “I have not heard of this boy. Maybe he is being misguided by some people.”