IPS officer’s instruction to ''break legs'' of Odisha Cong protesters sparks row
Bhubaneswar (PTI): An IPS officer of the Odisha cadre has allegedly instructed police personnel to "break legs" of some Congress workers and assured them of "rewards" for their action, prompting the opposition party in the state to condemn such a remark.
The controversy erupted after a purported video, in which Bhubaneswar Additional Police Commissioner Narasingha Bhol was seen instructing police personnel to "break their legs and take reward from me" during a Congress workers' protest, went viral.
PTI could not verify the authenticity of the video independently.
His alleged instruction came during a protest rally by Congress activists on Sunday night over the Puri stampede that left three people dead.
The Congress activists were holding a demonstration before the chief minister’s residence, alleging that there were lapses in crowd management, which led to the stampede incident.
In the viral video, Bhol was seen instructing the police personnel guarding barbed fencing near the CM’s residence not to allow anyone to breach the barricade.
Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Bhakta Charan Das said, “This is highly condemnable. This shows the BJP government’s attitude towards protesters. They (BJP) are criticising the emergency even after 50 years, but now a senior officer is instructing police personnel to break the legs of protesters. Is this a democracy?”
Das also accused Bhol of instigating Congress activists earlier during a rally in Bhubaneswar.
As his remarks stirred controversy, Bhol said that he urged the police personnel to perform their duties properly.
"I was briefing the personnel to take action against protesters if they take the law into their hands, and resort to violence and unlawful activities," Bhol said.
Youth Congress leader Yashir Nawaz said that they were holding a peaceful demonstration, demanding action against those responsible for the Puri stampede.
"The Congress was also demanding the resignation of the chief minister and the law minister. But, Bhol’s instruction to the police personnel is anti-democratic and highly condemnable," he said.
Three people were killed and around 50 others injured in the stampede during the Rath Yatra festivities in Puri on Sunday.
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Conspiracy afoot to 'tarnish' image of Dharmasthala: Deputy CM DK Shivakumar
Bengaluru, Aug 14 (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday said there was a “conspiracy” to tarnish the image of Dharmasthala.
His comments come amid an ongoing investigation by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into serious allegations of mass burials in the revered temple town in Dakshina Kannada district.
“A conspiracy is being hatched to destroy hundreds of years of legacy. It is not correct to tarnish someone just like that. It has all happened due to one complainant,” he said.
Noting that some Congress MLAs have called for action against those involved in the slander campaign at the legislature party meeting, he said, “ I have told them that action must be taken against those who are indulging in a slander campaign. The CM has also said that action must be taken against such people.”
“I have information on this case. Religious feelings should not be hurt in any manner. Culprits must be punished,” he told reporters, according to a release from his office.
Responding to a question, Shivakumar said the Congress party will not allow the image of any religious place to be tarnished.
“We see everyone equally when it comes to religion,” he added.
The SIT, formed by the state government, is probing claims of mass murder, rape, and mass burials in Dharmasthala over the past two decades.
The complainant, a former sanitation worker whose identity has not been revealed, alleged that between 1995 and 2014 he was forced to handle bodies—including women and minors—and that some showed signs of sexual assault. He has given a statement before a magistrate.
As part of the probe, the SIT has been conducting exhumations at multiple locations identified by the complainant-witness in the forested areas along the banks of the Netravathi River in Dharmasthala, where some skeletal remains have been found at two sites so far.
