Pappu Yadav detained while enforcing Bihar bandh

Patna, Jul 11: Madhepura MP and Jan Adhikar Party (JAP) leader Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav was today taken into preventive detention with several of his supporters while they were enforcing a bandh in the state capital here.

Patna (Central) Superintendent of Police (SP) Chandan Kumar Kushwaha said, "Yadav and over 100 of his supporters have been taken into preventive detention from Dak Bungalow square while they were enforcing a bandh.

Former state minister and Samras Samaj Party leader Nagmani is also among them." Yadav had given a call for

bandh to protest the death of 23-year-old youth Siku Raj in a hospital here after being allegedly beaten by BSF and state police officials in Kishanganj while he had gone there from his native place in Gaya district to participate in a BSF recruitment camp.

The JAP leader took out a march from his party office in the city demanding justice for the deceased youth, whose postmortem report revealed that he was severely beaten. Yadav and his party supporters marched up to Dak Bungalow square, the nerve centre of city traffic and blocked it, throwing traffic in Patna haywire.

They also squatted there for some time before the police whisked them away. Kushwaha said Yadav, Nagmani and all others have been kept at Bihar Military Police - 5 grounds and will be released within 24 hours as the rules stipulate.

"Siku Raj was an innocent, promising youth. He was murdered in cold blood by the police and paramilitary forces without any fault and the government tried to hide the facts. The postmortem report has revealed that he died of severe beating. We want justice for him and arrest of his killers," Yadav said.

JAP supporters turned violent at a few places, smashing window screens of vehicles while enforcing the bandh in other parts of the state including Bhagalpur, Bhojpur, Purnia, Katihar, Madhepura, Saharsa, Supaul and Madhepura districts, a police official said.

The bandh enforcers also halted two passenger trains in Madhepura and Bhojpur districts for some time, the official said.

PTI