Teacher recruitment exam aspirants protest near Bihar CM's residence; police resort to lathi-charge
Patna (PTI): Chaos erupted near the official residence of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in Patna on Tuesday when police baton-charged aspirants who had staged a sit-in demanding the release of supplementary results of a teacher recruitment exam.
The demonstrators, demanding the release of the Teacher Recruitment Exam (TRE-3) supplementary result, staged the protest outside the gates of the CM's residence on 1 Anne Marg. The entire area is a high-security zone and no such protest is allowed.
A large number of protesters, carrying placards, raised slogans against the state government and the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC), which conducted the exam.
Anu Kumari, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), Sachiwalay-1, requested the protesters to immediately vacate the area as such activities are restricted there.
When the protesters refused to budge, police resorted to baton-charge to disperse the aspirants. The SDPO, however, refused to speak to reporters.
Protesters claimed that several persons were injured in the baton-charge, which the officials denied.
One of the protesting candidates, Kriti Dutta, said they have been protesting in Gardanibagh area for the last four months.
"We have approached everybody, from ministers to secretaries and MLAs but none provided us with any solution," she said.
Another candidate said that the education minister had assured them that a letter had been sent to BPSC regarding the issue but nothing has been done so far.
Despite repeated attempts, neither Patna District Magistrate Chandrashekhar Singh nor Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Awakash Kumar were available for their comments on the incident and how the protesters managed to enter the high-security zone.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav condemned the lathi-charge on the protesting aspirants and expressed his solidarity with them.
In a post on X, Yadav wrote, "We condemn police action on protesters today. When the youth demand justice, their voice is ruthlessly crushed... it has become the fashion of the NDA governments at the Centre and the state to crush the voice of the youth."
"Students were protesting in a democratic manner today. This incompetent government nurtures and protects criminals and the corrupt, while it unleashes lathi charges on students, youths, and the unemployed. This is the time... people of the state should unite to change this incompetent government in the coming assembly polls in the state," he added.
BPSC conducted the teacher recruitment exam in March 2024 and a total of 87,774 posts were announced under TRE-3. However, only around 51,000 candidates have received appointment letters so far. The authorities had earlier promised a supplementary result, but nothing has happened so far.
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Strict security measures in place in Mumbai for Messi's events at 2 venues Dec 14, say police
Mumbai (PTI): In view of Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai on Sunday, the city police are implementing stringent security measures, like not allowing water bottles, metals, coins inside the stadiums and setting up watchtowers to keep an eye on the crowd, officials said.
The police also said taking extra care to avoid any stampede-like situation and to prevent recurrence of the chaotic situation that unfolded in Kolkata during Messi's visit on Saturday as thousands of fans protested inside the Salt Lake stadium here after failing to catch a clear glimpse of the football icon despite paying hefty sums for tickets.
Messi is expected to be present at the Cricket Club of India (Brabourne Stadium) in Mumbai on Sunday for a Padel GOAT Cup event followed by attending a celebrity football match. He is expected to proceed to the Wankhede Stadium for the GOAT India Tour main event around 5 pm.
"In view of Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai, the police are geared up and have put in place a high level of security arrangements in and around the stadiums located in south Mumbai. Considering the chaos that prevailed in Kolkata and the security breach, we have deployed World Cup-level security arrangements at Brabourne and Wankhede stadiums," an official said.
Expecting heavy crowd near the stadiums during Messi's visit, the city police force has deployed more than 2,000 of its personnel near and around both the venues, he said.
As the Mumbai police have the experience of security 'bandobast' during the victory parade of ICC World Cup-winning Indian team and World Cup final match at the Wankhede Stadium, in which over one lakh cricket fans had gathered, we are prepared to handle a large crowd of fans, he said.
"We are trying to avoid the errors that occurred in the past," the official said.
There is no place to sneak inside the stadiums in Mumbai like the Kolkata stadium, according to him.
The police are also asking the organisers to provide all the required facilities to the fans inside the stadium, so that there will be no chaos, he said, adding the spectators have purchased tickets in the range of Rs 5,000 to 25,000. After paying so much of amount, any spectator expects proper services, while enjoying the event, he said.
The police are expecting 33,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium and over 4,000 at Brabourne Stadium. Besides this, more than 30,000 people are expected outside and around the stadiums just to have a glimpse of the football sensation, he said.
The organisers responsible for Messi's India visit recently came to Mumbai to discuss security arrangements. During the meeting, the Mumbai police asked them not to take the event lightly, according to the official.
After those requirements were fulfilled, the final security deployment was chalked out, he said.
Police has the standard procedure of the security arrangements inside the Wankhede Stadium, where people are barred from taking water bottles, metals objects, coins. Police are setting up watch towers near the stadiums and there will be traffic diversions, so that there is maximum space available to stand, according to the official.
Police are also appealing to the spectators to use public transport service for commuting and avoid personal vehicles to reach south Mumbai.
To avoid any stampede-like situation, police are also taking precautionary measures and will stop the fans some distance ahead of the stadium and public announcement systems will be used to guide the crowd. Barricades will be placed at various places to manage the crowd.
In case the crowd swells up beyond expectation, the police will divert people to other grounds and preparations in this regard underway, he said.
Additional police force has been deployed in south Mumbai to tackle any kind of situation, he said.
