According to the police, while on the way to the police station, Gaurav informed his father who reached there with Paras, Rahul and others. (Representational Image)Aligarh Superintendent of Police Akshay Kulheri suspended two sub-inspectors in connection with the alleged beating of a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh leader, his sons and a few BJP workers at Sasni Gate Police Station on Thursday night.
The RSS leader, Shyam Sundar Gupta (65), the Shakha Kayawah (executive head of the Sangh’s unit) and his nephew Rahul (35) are undergoing treatment in a local hospital, while the others have been released after preliminary medical treatment, police said.
“The policemen at Sasni Gate beat up my father as a result of which his teeth have been damaged and he also has swelling in his legs,” said Paras Gupta, the eldest son of the RSS leader.
Giving details of the incident, Paras said that his younger brother Gaurav (32) and his friend Aashu were out in the market Thursday night when their two-wheeler was hit by a wheelbarrow of a vendor named Rashid (45) following which they had an argument.
Rashid then called other vendors in the market and beat up Gaurav and Aashu. Meanwhile, the two sub-inspectors – Madan Pal and Rajiv Rana – reached there and took all the three, including Rashid, to the Sasni Gate police station, Paras added.
According to the police, while on the way to the police station, Gaurav informed his father who reached there with Paras, Rahul and others.
“My father tried to reason it out with the policemen but the cops threatened to book Gaurav and his friend along with Rashid for causing violence in the market. Soon, the cops started beating up my father and others with lathis and arm blows,” Paras said.
As words of the incident spread, Sanjeev Raja and Anil Parashar, both BJP legislators from Aligarh, reached there along with their supporters. “The BJP leaders were so angry that they also attacked the cops. In an attempt to escape the attack, they locked themselves inside the chamber of the SHO, Aruna Rai, but the BJP leaders broke the door and pulled the cops out,” said Paras.
When contacted, Aruna said she was out of the police station at that time. “I was not present when all this happened but Madan Pal and Rajeev Rana have been suspended by the SSP,” she added.
The Deputy SP of Aligarh, Vishal Pandey and the SSP also reached the police station and somehow brought the situation under control. “The SSP has seen the CCTV footage and also talked to the RSS leader and the BJP legislators before suspending the two sub-inspectors with immediate effect. They also warned the other cops present at the police station. No FIR has been registered by the RSS leader’s family or their supporters. Rashid has been arrested for rioting. Based on the CCTV footage, I can say for certain that the policemen did not behave in a responsible manner and a minor issue got blown out of proportion by inept handling on part of the law enforcers,” Vishal Pandey said.
When asked why no action has been taken against the RSS leader’s supporters who also beat up the police, the SSP said that he has asked SP (city) Ashutosh Dwivedi to probe the incident after which action will be taken against those found guilty. “We have not lodged an FIR in this connection because the policemen who were responsible for the incident have been punished. Such incidents do not send a good message in the society. The BJP workers should also know that we have to face the general election in a few months and the road to Dehli goes through Uttar Pradesh,” said Anil Parashar, BJP MLA from Koil in Aligarh.
