AGARTALA, Nov 17 � At least 50 Congress activists including opposition leader Sudip Roy Barman were injured when Tripura State Rifles (TSR) jawans resorted to lathicharge on a civil disobedience movement near IGM Chowmuhani here.
Angered by the lathicharge, the Congress has called a 12-hour Statewide strike in protest against the alleged brutal act by the TSR jawans at the behest of the Left Front Government. The dawn-to-dusk strike would be observed on November 20 next.
Demanding a CBI inquiry into the multi-crore scam at Bishalgarh RD Block in Sipahijala district, thousands of Congress leaders and workers on Monday came out to join the party�s civil disobedience movement.
The civil disobedience movement began from Vivekananda Ground at 2 pm and proceeded towards IGM Chowmuhani. On the way, police tried to stop the procession by putting barricades. The movement turned violent when TSR jawans in combat dress resorted to lathicharge on Congress activists who were breaking the third barricade.
�At least 50 party leaders and supporters including the opposition leader were injured in the lathicharge. Seven were shifted to GBP and IGM hospitals in critical condition�, said PCC working president Asish Kumar Saha.
Later talking to media, the opposition leader criticised Chief Minister Manik Sarkar for using force on the peaceful movement. �It�s shocking that innocent people who joined the peaceful agitational programme were attacked by TSR jawans. And that has been done at the behest of Sarkar�, he alleged.
Showing documentary evidence of the scam, Roy Barman claimed the Audit Directorate had revealed misappropriation of public fund amounting to Rs 100 crore in 23 RD Blocks. �The Left Front Government must come clean by making the audit report public or else the Congress will continue to stage agitational programmes�, he added.
