Police should not use force against agitators: SDM

Durgapur, May 15 (UNI) Police forcefully removed hunger strikers, who today and last night protested against the jamming of polling booths by CPI(M) activists during the first phase of panchayat elections on May 11 and demanded a repolling in those booths.

SDM Durgapur Rathindra Narayan Basu Roychowdhury today said that in spite of repeated requests to keep police force within the ambit of peaceful maintenance of law and order, the police paid no heed and forceably dragged the naxalite agitators away from Pandabeswar yesterday and Andal today where they were holding non-violent demonstrations.

Last night, taking advantage of the blackout in the area, police descended on the agitators sitting at City Centre, Pandabeswar, and roughed them up. Later, they were forcefully taken to S D Hospital, Durgapur. However, the agitators refused to even accept treatment.

The SDM condemned the police action and confessed before media persons here that despite repeated orders from his office asking the police to handle the situation without force, local police personnel did apply force to disrupt a democratic movement.

Andal OC Pintu Mukherjee, however, denied all charges brought against his department.

UNI XC LL RN1901