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A man named Balbinder Singh was arrested from GT Road in Howrah during the agitation by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers, the party alleged that the Sikh community was insulted as Singh’s turban fell off when he was being taken into custody. The police, however, have denied the charge, saying that the pagri fell off during the scuffle and that the man was asked to put it on before he was arrested.
The outrage over the incident had cricketer Harbhajan Singh tweeting to chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday, saying: “Please look into this matter @MamataOfficial this isn’t done.”
He posted tweets and news video clippings tweeted by BJP’s Delhi unit secretary Impreet Singh Bakshi. The same tweets and videos were also shared by BJP national secretary Arvind Menon and other leaders.
“In Bengal, is there no respect for people from other religious faiths except a specific one?” tweeted Menon.
A few members of the Sikh community staged a silent protest in central Kolkata. They carried small posters that sought “justice” for Singh.
Shiromani Akali Dal, too, demanded that Mamata Banerjee take action against the policemen responsible for the attack on Singh, who has been sent to police custody till Monday.
Sikh man carried a licensed gun
In another tweet, the WB Police shared a photo of Singh with his turban on saying, “West Bengal Police respects all religions. The officer specifically asked him to put his Pagri back before the arrest. The attached photo has been clicked right before he was escorted to the Police Station. We remain committed to our duty to uphold law and order in the state.”
A 9 mm pistol was seized from Singh who provided a gun licence after his arrest that identified him as a former soldier with Rashtriya Rifles in Rajouri in Jammu and Kashmir. BJP leader Dilip Ghosh, when asked about it on Thursday, had said Singh was the security of a BJP leader.
Reacting to the incident, BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya slammed the TMC saying that even brave soldiers who had served the nation are not spared in the TMC's regime.
Demanding severe punishment of the guilty policemen, Vijayvargiya said that humiliation of such brave people is sad in Mamata Raj.
Babul Supriyo also reacted on the matter and demanded strict action against the West Bengal police.