Protests after assault slur on Deb

Gautam Deb

TT, Siliguri, Sept. 29: Two persons filed separate FIRs against minister Gautam Deb around 11pm yesterday alleging that he had slapped them last night when he had gone to lay the foundation stone of an electric crematorium at Ramghat in Ward 5 here.

Around 50 Left Front workers and local leaders went to the Siliguri police station last night demanding Deb’s arrest for allegedly assaulting Mahananda Mondal and Subhash Roy.

Both Mondal and Roy filed separate complaints against Deb alleging that they were beaten up by the minister while they were speaking to him about the installation of the electrical crematorium. When the Left Front leaders and workers left, the Congress also took out a rally led by Sankar Malakar, the Darjeeling district party president and the MLA of Matigara-Naxalbari with over 100 workers to the Siliguri police station.

Deb has denied the charge. “The protests were planned by a section of local people with political interests. I have not assaulted anybody,” he said.

A source said, Timir Bose, the superintending engineer of the north Bengal development department, has filed a complaint against Mondal, Roy and some others. Later today, a delegation of BJP led by district president Rathindra Bose visited ward 5.

Jag Mohan, the commissioner of Siliguri metropolitan police, said: “We have received three complaints from both sides and we are looking into the matter.”