Soldier says assaulted by miscreants in Bengal town

Hooghly: An Indian Army jawan currently on leave was allegedly assaulted by a gang of miscreants after he refused to pay them a hefty sum of money in West Bengal's Hooghly district to allow him to construct a new house.

Pravin Kumar Rajak, posted with Rashtriya Rifles, who was visiting his family in Bhadreswar, said he was beaten up by a group of locals.

"I have come on a 20-day leave to spend time with my family. But some persons beat me up over money. I wonder if I am safe here at all," Rajak said.

"He planned to leave his rented house and build his own house here but the locals demanded hefty subscription from him. Nearly 10-12 miscreants beat him up brutally when he refused to pay. If an Army man is treated like this, what happens to commoners," Rajak's brother asked.

The soldier accused local police of not taking appropriate action despite a complaint by him two days ago.

"I lodged a police complaint two days ago but no arrests were made," he alleged.

The police, however, said they arrested two people on Tuesday and produced them in court, but they were released.

"Two locals were arrested on charges of wrongful restraint (Section 341 of the Indian Penal Code) and voluntarily causing grievous hurt (Section 325) to the complainant. However, they were not remanded to police custody," an officer from Bhadreswar police station said.