Deccan Chronicle

Tension in Chengicher­la after Bandi’s visit; consoles victims

- DC CORRESPOND­ENT police

WHAT actually happened is that the ST community here has a tradition of worshiping the goddess with devotional songs during holi. But some alleged Rohingya came there and threatened to stop the celebratio­ns.

Tension gripped Chengicher­la village after the Karimnagar MP and BJP national general secretary Bandi Sanjay Kumar, along with hundreds of activists, barged through barricades to meet victims and their families when the police tried to prevent them on Wednesday.

He consoled the family members and assured them that the BJP would extend support to them. Around 1.30 pm, Sanjay Kumar and hundreds of BJP activists reached Chengicher­la village where a communal issue had cropped up a few days back. As a precaution­ary measure, police set up huge barricades at Pittal basti to prevent his visit. However, the BJP activists forced their way into the village leading to a scuffle with police personnel, who were unable to control the situation.

Meanwhile,

— BANDI SANJAY KUMAR, Karimnagar MP

deployed heavy forces in the surroundin­gs of places of worship as a preventive measure.

However, there were no untoward incidents. Later, the BJP leader said that the police and some vested interests were trying to blame the poor people without trying to establish the facts that had led to the incident. Much like the days of the Nizam and when K. Chandrashe­kar Rao was heading the state, the Congress rule is like a throwback to the emergency days under Indira Gandhi, he said.

What actually happened is that the ST community here has a tradition of worshiping the goddess with devotional songs during holi. But some alleged Rohingya came there and threatened to stop the celebratio­ns. Hundreds of antisocial forces came to the houses of the victims and attacked them, he said, adding that miscreants attacked them with deadly weapons in which Rupa, Sammakka, Varun and Anisha were seriously injured. Is Chengicher­la a restricted area? Is this a monarchy? Are we still under the rule of Razakars?, the BJP MP asked. He urged the state government to provide compensati­on to the victims and take action against police who did nothing after miscreants had assaulted a woman and others.

 ?? — S. SURENDER REDDY ?? BJP national general secretary Bandi Sanjay Kumar consoles victims who were injured in clashes in Chengicher­la, on Wednesday.
— S. SURENDER REDDY BJP national general secretary Bandi Sanjay Kumar consoles victims who were injured in clashes in Chengicher­la, on Wednesday.

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