2 Bengal men arrested for intimidating job seekers from Bihar in Siliguri | Kolkata
SILIGURI: West Bengal’s Siliguri city police on Friday arrested two men for allegedly heckling two Bihar residents who came to apply for jobs in a central police force, police said.
The two accused, members of Bangla Paksha, an organisation advocating the rights of the state’s Bengali-speaking population, claimed the young men were using fake West Bengal domiciliary certificates to secure their appointment.
The accused, Rajat Bhattacharya and Giridhar Mondal, were detained on Thursday evening and produced before a judge on Friday.
Police said the two candidates left Siliguri after the incident and could not be traced.
The heckling and intimidation, which happened on Tuesday, surfaced on Thursday when a video of the incident went viral in Bihar and parts of north Bengal, triggering outrage.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Union minister Giriraj Singh and Bihar’s Lok Jan Shakti Party (Ram Vilas) leader and Union minister Chirag Paswan demanded action against the guilty in their social media posts.
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar also ordered chief secretary and DGP to get details from West Bengal. RJD chief Lalu Prasad also spoke to West Bengal CM Mamta Banerjee asking her to take action against the culprits. The Bihar police on Thursday evening wrote to their counterparts in West Bengal to seek action in the case and ensure safety of Bihar students.
“The video that went viral is said to be of Siliguri in which two students said to be from Bihar are being assaulted and tortured to prevent them from appearing at the examination. The clip has been forwarded to you on your mobile,” Bihar additional director general (law & order) Sanjay Singh said in the letter.
Police said the incident took place on Tuesday when some members of Bangla Paksha entered a rented accommodation at Ranidanga on the outskirts of Siliguri and allegedly heckled the Bihar residents who came to the north Bengal headquarters of Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) for physical tests being conducted for recruitment of constables.
The Bangla Paksha members accused the young men of producing fake West Bengal domicile certificates for the job. In the video, the two job applicants were made to hold their ears and do sit-ups.
“In the video, Bhattacharya could be heard accusing the Bihar residents of taking away jobs meant for local Bengalis. One of the Bangla Paksha members claimed to be a policeman,” a police officer said on condition of anonymity.
HT cannot verify the authenticity of the video clip.
Atri Sharma, president of the Siliguri-based Bihari Kalyan Manch, neither confirmed nor denied the allegation of fake domiciliary certificates being used by the job applicants. Sharma said it was for the police to investigate whether they produced a fake certificate. “We strongly condemn the assault on the Bihari youths. We see it as an act of terrorism.”
While being taken to court on Friday, Bhattacharya accused the Bihar residents of using fake documents. “We will not allow this,” he said.
“We are looking for other members of this Bengali group,” a police official said.
No SSB official commented on the incident till Friday afternoon.
