BJP workers lathi-charged by police in Uttar Pradesh

BJP workers were on Wednesday lathi- charged by police as they attempted to gherao Vidhan Bhawan when the House was in session to protest against the law and order situation in the state.

The BJP workers assembled at party headquarters and attempted to march towards Vidhan Bhawan where heavy barricading was done by police. The workers, including party MPs and MLAs, broke the barricades and continued their march towards Vidhan Bhawan after which police used water cannons and then used force to disperse them. "The protest is against the poor law and order situation which the government itself admitted to in the Assembly yesterday," BJP state general secretary Vijay Bahadur Pathak said.

"The government in a written reply yesterday admitted that in past over five months, 1,012 cases of rape and 4,520 of women harassment have been registered in Uttar Pradesh," he said.

"From March 15 to August 18 this month, 1,012 cases of rape, 4,520 cases of women harassment, 1,386 of loot and 86 cases of dacoity have been reported in the state," the UP government had informed in reply to a question by BJP member Satish Mahana in the state assembly.

For effective check on such crimes, Crime Branch has been constituted in every district under Additional SP (Crime) it said. The reply said through web-based mapping, hotspots of crimes are being identified and effective patrolling is being ensured.

Meanwhile, the BJP claimed that 250 of its workers were hurt in police action of whom, 100 received grievous injuries.

A spokesman claimed that around 100 leaders and workers, including former chief of the party's Uttar Pradesh unit Surya Pratap Shahi, sustained serious injuries in police action. Later, state BJP chief Keshav Prasad Maurya paid a visit to the injured at the Civil Hospital.

The police, on the other hand, claimed that several of its personnel, including senior officers, were injured in brick-batting by the BJP workers.