Several members of the Aam Aadmi Party were injured today on being allegedly attacked by ruling BJP workers and policemen at a demonstration here today.
The injured include AAP State President, Gopal Italiya and journalist turned AAP leader Isudan Gadhvi. While some AAP activists sustained head injuries, others suffered bruises on their back during the lathi charge.
The Aam Aadmi Party activists found themselves at the receiving end of abuse of power by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and police while they were protesting over inaction in the recent paper leak scam.
Provoked by the demonstration in the BJP State headquarters in Kamlam, the saffron party workers accompanied by men from Gujarat Police allegedly rained batons and blows on the AAP activists before dragging them and throwing them out from the office. This did not stop with police manhandling the protesters. Police registered FIR against the 500 activists for creating unruly scenes in the saffron party head office.
The ruling party termed the protest as “an unnecessary drama “and said that it had already initiated action on the scam. The AAP activists were not satisfied with the BJP action on the scam so far in which a police investigation had been ordered and 11 people have been arrested.
Arvind Kejriwal’s party which had blown the whistle on the leak of the question paper of government head clerks exam held on December 12 attended by 88,000-plus candidates, has been demanding the sacking of Gujarat Subordinate Services Selection Board (GSSSB) chairman Asit Vora.
The BJP hit back by levelling serious charges against journalist-turned-AAP leader Isudan Gadhvi for drunken behaviour against women members of the saffron party.
Read: Forced Into Action, Cops Finally Nab 6 in Gujarat Paper Leak Scam
BJP spokesperson, Shraddha Rajput took the lead in registering a police complaint about this as well as against AAP workers for allegedly creating rowdy scenes at the BJP headquarters.
Two BJP women workers levelled allegations of eve-teasing and breach of modesty against Isudan and Gopal Italia. Rajput alleged that Gadhvi, in an inebriated state, harassed and roughed up women members of the saffron party.
By evening, the first medical report of Gadhvi at the government Civil Hospital came negative — that is he was not under the influence of alcohol. The first test comprises the use of breath analyzers.
Video footage showed that the Chief of the BJP Youth wing, Prakash Korat was indulging in violence against AAP demonstrators.
Minister of State for Home, Harsh Sanghavi, who rushed to the BJP office from the Secretariat on learning of the AAP’s siege there, said, “The AAP is trying to extract political mileage out of the paper leak, while the government has already initiated action in it.”
The AAP and Congress have pointed to nine incidents of leak of question papers of government exams conducted by the GSSSB during the last seven years. Both parties have been making serious allegations against Vora who is a BJP leader and former mayor of Ahmedabad.
Meanwhile, the Congress party, which has alleged that the accused in the paper leak scam had BJP links, organised state-wide protests demanding action against “big fish involved” in it.
