BJP leader booked for 'beating up' man, 'molesting' girlfriend in city pub
Kolkata: BJP leader Anupam Hazra has been booked for allegedly beating up a man and molesting his girlfriend at a pub in the city, police said on Monday.
Hazra, a former Trinamool Congress MP, has been also booked for allegedly snatching the man's gold chain following a brawl over clicking selfies with him at a pub on Ho Chi Minh Sarani late on Saturday night, a senior police officer said.
A complaint has been lodged by Suresh Roy, a resident of Kasba area, on Sunday following which police has started an investigation into the incident, the officer said.
In his complaint, Roy said he met Hazra during a visit to the pub with his girlfriend and friends on Saturday night and had taken selfies with the politician, he said.
"Roy mentioned in the complaint that sometime after taking selfies with Hazra, the BJP leader came up to the complainant and asked him the reason for clicking his photographs. Roy said Hazra then verbally abused him and punched him on the face," the officer said.
Roy alleged that after beating him up, Hazra had molested his girlfriend and also snatched his gold chain that was around his neck, he said.
"We are scrutinising CCTV footage of the pub and are also speaking with its manager and people present there during the incident," the officer said. Hazra, when contacted, dismissed the charges and alleged that the complainant was "fully drunk" when he approached him for a selfie.
"My security guards initially did not allow him (Roy) but when he kept on requesting for a selfie, I told them to let him click it. After taking the selfie, he went to his table.
"However, one of my security guards saw him taking videos of me from his table and sending them to someone. It was then we complained to the pub manager about it who drove the group away from there," Hazra said.
Dismissing the allegations, Hazra said, "There has been no such incident. Because I am a BJP leader, police has registered such a complaint. No officer has contacted me till now."
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Centre spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print media ads for RSS centenary, reveals RTI
New Delhi: The Union Ministry of Culture allegedly spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print advertisements marking the 100-year celebrations of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), according to a Right to Information (RTI) reply.
The information was sought by RTI activist Ajay Basudev Bose, who filed an application seeking details on expenditure incurred by the ministry for advertisements commemorating the RSS centenary.
Bose shared a picture of the reply from the ministry on his official ‘X’ handle.
“It is informed that an amount of Rs 76,13,129 has been spent on advertisement given in various print media by the Ministry of Culture on the occasion of the completion of 100 years of RSS,” the government’s reply stated.
RTI reply shows Min of Culture Govt of India spent a Whopping Rs 76L,13K,129 on Advertisement in Print Media on occasion of 100 yrs of #RSS
— AJAY Basudev Bose (@AjayBos93388306) April 16, 2026
When Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??@RSSorg… pic.twitter.com/dW4IUtdNCg
Bose questioned the expenditure in the post X, “when Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??”
Reacting to the development, Karnataka’s IT-BT and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge also criticised the spending.
In a post on X, he asked why public money was being used for what he described as a “private ideological project.”
"Modi Sarkar spent Rs 76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS. Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to celebrate their centenary?," he added.
Why is public money being used to serve a private ideological project?
— Priyank Kharge / ಪ್ರಿಯಾಂಕ್ ಖರ್ಗೆ (@PriyankKharge) April 16, 2026
Modi Sarkar spent ₹76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS.
Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to… pic.twitter.com/EoZ6Pim3IM
According to reports, the RSS describes itself as a volunteer-based organisation and has stated that it functions as a body of individuals rather than a registered entity.
Founded by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in 1925, the organisation is marking its centenary year beginning from Vijaydashami in 2025, with the milestone observed on October 2.
