Patna,(BiharTimes): A station diary entry was lodged with the Gandhi Maidan police station on Monday against the state Congress president Ashok Choudhary for calling the Patna SSP Vikas Vaibhav and requested him not to take harsh action against some National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) members in a case of vandalization outside the official residence of the human resources development minister, P K Shahi, on July 22, 2013. They protested over the mid-day meal tragedy in Saran district in which 23 children died.
The state Congress chief too hit back and hinted that the action initiated by Patna SSP was politically motivated. The party will bring out a breach of privilege motion against him in the Legislative Council.
A case (109/13) was lodged at Sachivalaya police station two years ago. On July 22, 2013, a group of people belonging to the NSUI had staged a violent protest outside the official residence of Shahi. The police had lodged an FIR against nine persons.
The police, during a review of old cases, took this up and SP (central) was asked to monitor the case and the Sachivalaya police station house officer has been directed to verify those named in the FIR and make arrests.
According to the SSP at 2:24 PM on Monday he got a call from a person who identified himself as Nishant Jha, saying he was Choudhary’s personal assistant. The man then handed over the phone to another person who identified himself as Ashok Choudhary. The person advised him not to take any action in the case since the accused people had a political background.
“Since the law is the same for everyone, I asked the person not to interfere with the police investigation. Since the identity of the callers needs to be verified, Gandhi Maidan police station house officer has been asked to lodge a station diary in connection with this incident and verify the caller's identity,” Vaibhav added.
Choudhary accepted that he had made a call to the SSP but he do not understand how did he try to influence an investigation?
“I just said those named in the FIR were from the Congress and added that the police should do a fair investigation? I will initiate an action too and will bring a breach of privilege motion against the SSP,” Choudhary told mediapersons.
“I do not see anything wrong with it. A legislator can call a police officer requesting him to take personal care while investigating a case. Sumit Kumar Soni, state president of NSUI, Saranga Gogoi, the then national in charge of NSUI, and five other members of NSUI were made named accused in the FIR concerned. I told the SSP the NSUI members were not involved in any riot nor did they vandalize anything. They just held a protest march against education minister P K Shahi after the midday meal tragedy that claimed the lives of 23 schoolchildren in Saran district," he added.