Medical team, 6 cops attacked in two districts

TNN | Updated: Apr 16, 2020, 06:27 IST

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AURANGABAD/MOTIHARI/BIHARSHARIF: A block development officer (BDO), three members of a medical team and six policemen were injured in separate mob attacks in East Champaran and Aurangabad districts on Wednesday.
Three members of a medical team and equal number of policemen were injured when villagers of Akauni under Goh police station in Aurangabad district attacked them with bricks for screening the residents for Covid-19. The injured policemen included Daudnagar sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Rajkumar Tiwari.
Sources said Daudnagar BDO was informed that a man had recently returned to Akauni from Delhi. The BDO along with Goh police and a medical team went to the village for screening the man. But the villagers protested and started pelting stones. Dr Arjun Kumar, ANM Neelu Kumari and several others were injured in the incident. Later, SDPO Tiwari with SDO Anupam Singh visited the village, but they were also attacked by the villagers. The SDPO, constable Pintu Kumar and another policeman got injured in the incident.
Aurangabad DM Saurabh Jorwal and SP Deepak Barnawal rushed to the village and controlled the situation. The DM said the main conspirator behind the attack, Subhash Yadav, along with 44 other persons were arrested and an FIR was lodged against them in this connection.
In another incident, Harsidhi BDO Sunil Kumar and three policemen were injured when the residents of Jagapakad under Harsidhi police station in East Champaran attacked them over non-distribution of ration from public distribution system (PDS) shops. All the injured persons were undergoing treatment at Areraj referral hospital.
The incident occurred when the BDO along with the policemen visited the village to spread awareness on social distancing to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and keeping children safe from acute encephalitis syndrome (AES).
Sunil in his police complaint said when he was advising the villagers not to allow their children to move out in scorching sun and don’t allow them to sleep without meal, they started complaining about non-supply of ration from four out of five PDS shops since March. Soon they turned hostile and attacked him and his team with stones and other hard objects.
Ram Awatar, a villager, alleged that the BDO did not take action against the unscrupulous dealers despite repeated requests.
Harsidhi MLA Rajendra Ram, however, alleged that Dalit women were beaten up by the police for demanding action against PDS shop owners.
Areraj DSP Jyoti Prakash said guilty persons would be arrested soon.
Four arrested in Nalanda: Four persons were arrested and over 400 others made accused for attacking policemen in two separate incidents in Nalanda district on Tuesday. Rajgir SDPO Somnath Bharti said a mob of over 100 persons, including women, attacked a quarantine centre at Nalanda Mor on Tuesday. Five Covid-19 suspects were quarantined there. He said some locals spread rumours that Covid positive patients were kept at the quarantine centre and there was strong possibility of others to get infected by them. He said the mob pelted stones at the quarantine centre as well as the police team.
In another incident, Deepnagar police named 54 persons as accused for attacking policemen and trying to damage police vehicle on Monday. A police officer said the irate mob of over 300 people had blocked NH-31 near Biharsharif Pahadi to protest police excesses. The protesters accused the administration of shifting wholesale vegetable market from Bazar Samiti to Deepnagar stadium on Sunday. When they were returning from the stadium after selling their stock, Deepnagar police thrashed them for not keeping proper documents of their bikes. The vendors denied attack on policemen or their vehicles.