Hyderabad: Over 300 BJP and RSS workers were
taken into preventive custody today for trying to force their
way into the office of the city police commissioner here.
BJP had organised a dharna in front of the commissioner's
office at Basheerbagh to protest alleged harassment of party
workers by police personnel.
The protesters claimed police had been "unnecessarily
foisting cases" against workers belonging to BJP, Hindu Vahini
and RSS.
Police personnel, deployed in front of the commissioner's
office, used mild lathicharge to disperse the agitators when
they tried to force their way into the building.
While police said 300 BJP activists were taken into
preventive custody, BJP members claimed over 600 agitators,
including members belonging to RSS, ABVP and Hindu Vahini,
were detained.
Former Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya, who
participated in the dharna, alleged police "unnecessarily"
created a scene when the party workers were staging a peaceful
agitation.
State party president G Kishan Reddy, spokesperson NVSS
Prabhakar, BJP Greater Hyderabad president B Venkat Reddy and
former MLAs Baddam Balareddy and P Ramaswamy were among those
detained.
PTI
First Published: Tuesday, December 27, 2011, 15:44