An alleged assault on two young men from Bihar by a group of men claiming to be from the police in West Bengal’s Siliguri has set off a political storm with the Mamata Banerjee government coming under attack from two Union Ministers, Chirag Paswan of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) and Giriraj Singh of the BJP.
The video, whose authenticity has not been independently verified by NDTV, is reportedly from Siliguri and the two men, who had gone to take part in the physical exam for a Staff Selection Commission (SSC) recruitment, were made to apologise and do sit-ups and one of them was thrown against a wall by their attackers, who claimed they had forged their domicile certificates. A domicile certificate proves that a person has been a resident of a state for a certain period.
Posting the video, Mr Paswan, who is the minister for Food Processing Industries and a part of the ruling NDA, asked whether it was a crime to appear for an exam in West Bengal. The minister also targeted the opposition RJD and Congress in Bihar, who are allies of Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress, and asked how they could continue to support the party.
पश्चिम बंगाल में बिहारी छात्रों से बर्बरतापूर्ण मारपीट की खबर बेहद दुर्भाग्यपूर्ण और निंदनीय है। वहां की मुख्यमंत्री ने फिर एक बार बिहारियों का अपमान किया है, जिसे कतई बर्दाश्त नहीं किया जा सकता। मैं ममता बनर्जी जी से पूछना चाहता हूं कि क्या पश्चिम बंगाल में परीक्षा देना भी गुनाह… pic.twitter.com/r63phJkbcr
— युवा बिहारी चिराग पासवान (@iChiragPaswan) September 26, 2024
“The news of the brutal assault on Bihari students in West Bengal is very unfortunate and condemnable. The chief minister of that state has once again insulted Biharis, which cannot be tolerated at all. I want to ask Mamata Banerjee ji, is it a crime to take an exam in West Bengal? Will the opposition party leaders still remain silent?” Mr Paswan posted in Hindi on X.
“I want to ask the Leader of Opposition of Bihar, on what basis will you support the Trinamool Congress now? I request the Honorable Chief Minister Shri Nitish Kumar ji to get the matter thoroughly investigated and take legal action against the culprits,” he added.
BJP leader and Textiles Minister Giriraj Singh also posted the video and alleged that while a red carpet is rolled out from Rohingya Muslims in West Bengal, men from Bihar are beaten up for appearing for an exam. He also alluded to the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata as well as the criticism that Ms Banerjee’s government has received because of its handling of the case and asked whether it has decided to protect only rapists.
“Red carpet for Rohingya Muslims in Bengal and children from Bihar beaten up for taking exam? Are these children not part of India? Has the Mamata government resolved to save only rapists?” he wrote in Hindi on X, tagging BJP leader and Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari.
Assault Video
The video shows the two men sleeping when some people barge into their room, wake them up and ask, in Bengali, where they are from. They are asked whether they understand Bengali and when they say they are from Bihar, they are questioned about the purpose of their visit.
One of the men, Ankit Yadav, says they have come to appear for a physical exam. A man in the group asks Yadav how they can appear for an exam in Bengal when they are not from the state.
When Yadav says the Siliguri centre was allotted to them, people from the group say only those with a domicile in Bengal can apply for that centre. The men in the group then ask Yadav to show his documents, claiming that they are from the police.
As the confrontation escalates and people in the group begin to threaten them, Yadav asks them to take him to the police station. He is forced to the ground and then he says he will return to Bihar. Yadav and the other man are then made to do sit-ups and warned not to come to Bengal for exams again. Yadav is also pushed against the wall as he refuses to give his documents fearing they would be torn.
The video ends with Yadav pleading with the attackers and promising that he would return home.
