BJP workers, cops clash during J’khand secretariat gherao

Ranchi: Police used the cane, water cannons and burst tear gas shells as BJP workers attempted to breach the security barricade on their way to the Project Building during the saffron camp’s state-level march to the state secretariat on Tuesday to protest the Hemant Soren government’s ‘failed’ promises to the masses.
Several party workers, some journalists and a few policemen sustained injuries as bottles and stones were pelted around 1.30pm leading to a complete pandemonium that lasted for about half an hour.
Around 20,000 workers from across the state had descended at Prabhat Tara ground since last night to attend the march titled ‘Hemant hatao, Jharkhand bachchao’, as part of which BJP had planned to lay siege to Project Building over jobs, recruitment policy, law and order and corruption among other issues.
Almost all top leaders of the state unit comprising MLAs, MPs besides Union ministers Arjun Munda (tribal affairs) and Annapurna Devi (MoS education) took part in Tuesday’s march which they termed as ‘ulgulan’ (uprising) against the ‘corrupt’ government. Prior to the march, the party held a mega rally at the Prabhat Tara ground at 11 am, where senior party workers addressed in turns to take digs at the Soren government. The march to the secretariat, around 2km from the Prabhat Tara ground, began at 1pm.
Addressing the rally, former CM Raghubar Das said, “Yehi Sarkar balu chor, gitti chor hai. Ab isko hatane ka time aagaya hai. (This government has looted sand and stones and it’s time to unseat it).”