Senior BJP leaders including ex-Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan, state president Rakesh Singh, member of parliament Shankar Lalwani, mayor Malini Gaud, MLA Ramesh Mendola and others were detained during a ‘halla-bol’ demonstration of the party in Indore on Friday.
BJP’s state unit held the demonstration at all district headquarters of the state to protest against the alleged discriminatory action on BJP workers and leaders during the ongoing anti-mafia operations in the state. The opposition party was also protesting against the “failure” of the Congress government to keep election promises.
The senior leaders were held when they tried to lay siege upon the district collectorate and started a march towards it. They had a face off with the police that attempted to stop them.
Claiming that the permission was given only to hold a public meet, the police detained the senior leaders and sent them to an open jail at Azad Nagar. Though they initially refused to seek bail, they were later released on personal bonds. A total of 353 leaders and workers were detained.
Ex-chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan led the demonstration at Bhopal, leader of opposition Gopal Bhargava at Indore, ex-ministers Narottam Mishra and Rajendra Shukla at Jabalpur and Satna respectively and ex-state BJP president Nandkumar Singh Chouhan at Khandwa.
State president Rakesh Singh said that the BJP leaders and workers were being threatened in the name of anti-mafia operations and they were asked to join the Congress else face action. Also extortion was being done from them. He said that the party workers were not afraid of anything and the BJP was now on the streets to oppose the “discriminatory” and “oppressive” ways of the state government.
‘Action on 11 kinds of mafia; land worth Rs 1,500 crore freed’
Even as the BJP held its demonstration, Home Minister Bala Bachchan in Indore and Public Relations Minister P.C. Sharma in Bhopal held press conferences to share the details of action on mafia taken by the government during past few months. The ministers said that the action would continue and now shift to even smaller cities.
Bala Bachchan mentioned that land worth Rs 1,500 crore, including lands of temples worth Rs 700 crore, had been freed from land mafia. Land deeds would be handed over to 800 eligible land holders by the chief minister in Indore.
The home minister said that action has been initiated on land mafia, liquor mafia, adulterators, cooperatives mafia, extortionists, mining mafia, drug mafia and even those engaging in illegal activities under the garb of journalism. Total 11 kinds of mafia were targeted for action. Action was also initiated on several anti-social elements with long criminal records.
