Raizada says aides badly thrashed in police custody

r Correspondent

UNA, AUGUST 21

The August 12 incident related to the arrest of Una MLA Satpal Raizada’s aides, including his PSO, PA and driver, for allegedly roughing up policemen who had seized a car containing illicit liquor continues to hold center stage in the local politics here after the matter received attention in the ongoing Assembly session.

In a press release issued here today, Satpal Raizada has alleged that his aides were beaten up mercilessly while in police custody in Una. Terming their torture as illegal, he said all three were thrashed with belt.

He said they were handcuffed without the mandatory judicial permission and paraded in their village, just to mentally torture and humiliate them.

At about 10 pm on August 12, a Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of the Una police had intercepted a car containing 14 crates of illicit liquor in Pekhubela village. Just as they were questioning the occupant of the vehicle, MLA Satpal Raizada’s personal car, carrying his three aides reached the spot, who allegedly beat up the two policemen.

The MLA’s men were reportedly joined by some others who came in another car a few minutes and together they tried to destroy the liquor crates. Bottles packed in three out of the total fourteen crates had been broken by the time police reinforcements reached the spot.

Ruckus to mislead public, says state BJP chief

BJP president Satpal Satti said neither the police, nor the BJP workers had brought the MLA’s men to the spot. He said it was a fact that the MLA’s aides, which included a policeman, beat up the SIU staff who were on duty and were acting against the liquor mafia.

Satti questioned when neither the government nor the police have acted against or even questioned the Congress MLA, why was the Opposition making an issue . He said since the involvement of the MLA’s aides with the mafia had been unveiled in public, the Congress party was only trying to create a ruckus to mislead the public. He charged that Leader of Opposition was flaring up the incident needlessly. He said instead of being apologetic for trying to shield liquor mafia, the Congress leaders were making a hue and cry of being a victim to political victimisation.