14 Mahasabha, BJP workers send to judicial custody for attacking CPI (M) office

New Delhi, March 10 : A Delhi court on Monday remanded 14 Hindu Mahasabha activists and BJP workers to judicial custody for being involved in a clash with the police and CPI (M) workers outside its headquarters here.

Metropolitan Magistrate Sudesh Kumar, however, reserved the order on their bail applications for Tuesday.

As many as 14 persons including two former BJP MLAs Ram Niwas Goyal and Jeet Ram Solanki were arrested on Sunday after they indulged in stone-pelting at the CPI (M) headquarters and also clashed with the police and Left party workers.

Earlier, moving bail applications on behalf of the accused, their counsel Pinki Anand, K K Sud and Ajay Digpaul claimed that the BJP and RSS workers were peacefully demonstrating outside the AKG Bhawan here to protest against the violence in Kerala's Kannur district but they were attacked by the CPI(M) workers.

They also termed the allegation that the workers had removed stones from the pavement and hurled at the police and Left party head office as impossible.

The prosecution, on its part, opposed their contentions saying that the workers were arrested red-handed from the spot while indulging in violence.

Over two dozens BJP and CPI (M) workers were injured in the clash.

Earlier, the Centre on Monday warned that it would initiate criminal proceedings against those involved in yesterday's attack on the CPI (M) office here, but rejected BJP's demand for action against Left-ruled Kerala which has witnessed political violence recently.

Home Minister Shivraj Patil, however, assured the Rajya Sabha that the Centre would hold talks with Kerala government for restoration of peace in the state where two CPI(M) and five RSS workers were killed.

His assurance came after an impromptu debate in the House on yesterday's attack, which the Left parties alleged was engineered by the RSS and BJP, whose members said the root cause of the incident was violence against their cadres in Kerala.

ANI