A BJP leader died as police in Patna fired tear gas shells, used water cannons and resorted to a lathicharge to stop party workers from marching to the Bihar Assembly during a massive protest against the Nitish Kumar-led government in the state.
BJP MP and former Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi claimed the party’s Jehanabad district general secretary died due to injuries suffered in the “brutal” police lathicharge.
“Arrested by Bihar police in Patna. Jehanabad dist GS Vijay Kumar Singh died in brutal police lathi charge,” Mr Modi tweeted.
While the superintendent of the Patna Medical College Hospital confirmed the BJP leader’s death, hospital authorities have said he was brought dead and there were no external injuries on his body. They said only a post-mortem will ascertain the exact cause of death.
The party’s protest, which started from Gandhi Maidan in Patna, was against corruption and the government doing away with the domicile requirement for the recruitment of teachers.
The protest is part of a larger allegation of corruption that the BJP has levelled against the state government. The party has got more ammunition since Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav was named in the CBI chargesheet in the land-for-jobs scam on July 3.
