Jharkhand BJP files FIR over defacement of Syama Prasad Mookerjee statue in Ranchi
Jharkhand BJP leaders lodged an FIR at Argora police station after a statue of Syama Prasad Mookerjee in Ranchi's Harmu area was smeared with soot and defaced.
The Jharkhand unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party has lodged a police complaint over the defacement of a statue of Syama Prasad Mookerjee in the Harmu area of Ranchi, the state capital. The statue was smeared with soot and marked with offensive remarks.
A party delegation led by former state president and former Rajya Sabha MP Deepak Prakash, along with state vice president Balmukund Sahay, general secretary Ganesh Mishra and MLA Naveen Jaiswal, visited the Argora police station on Monday to file an FIR against unidentified persons. The complaint was registered by Indrajit Yadav, the party's Harmu Mandal president.
Police registered a case against unknown people under sections 324, 298, 196, 352 and 356 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971.
Prakash said Mookerjee was the founding president of the Jan Sangh and the architect of the party's ideological foundation. He said party workers were pained and shocked by what he described as a deliberate attempt to insult the statue, adding that while the statue could be damaged, Mookerjee's ideas could not be erased.
He said statues of national figures, irrespective of caste, religion or social background, represent their contributions, patriotism, sacrifice and national pride, and that desecrating them does not reflect a civilised society.
State BJP president Aditya Sahu called the incident extremely unfortunate and said disrespect to such icons cannot be tolerated. He alleged that criminals in Jharkhand no longer fear the police and that the audacity of anti-social and anti-national elements has grown under the state government.
Sahu demanded that the state government and police administration immediately identify and arrest those responsible and ensure strict legal action. He warned that if the culprits are not apprehended soon, the party would take to the streets in protest.
The party has also sought an impartial investigation, strict action against those involved and adequate security for Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee Park and the statue located behind the BJP office.