Patna, Aug 2 (SocialNews.XYZ) Political tensions surrounding the Bankipur Assembly by-election have continued even after polling, with Jan Suraaj candidate Prashant Kishor accusing the Patna police administration of attempting to influence the electoral process.
Kishor on Saturday lodged a complaint with the Bihar Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Vinod Singh Gunjiyal over the alleged detention and intimidation of Jan Suraaj workers.
He said that he would take the matter with the Election Commission in Delhi if necessary.
Kishor alleged that the Patna Senior Superintendent of Police Kartikeya Sharma and subordinate police officers had acted in a manner that could influence the election by intimidating voters and detaining party workers without justification.
"The actions taken by the Patna SSP and his subordinate police officers to influence the entire election process—intimidating voters and arresting people without cause—are unacceptable," he said.
According to Kishor, the complaint submitted to the Bihar CEO concerns what he described as "unjust police action" against Jan Suraaj workers in Patna.
He said the Bihar CEO Gunjiyal had assured him that an immediate inquiry would be ordered and appropriate action would be taken according to the rules.
Kishor added that, if required, he would approach the Election Commission of India in Delhi to raise the issue of what he termed the police administration's "high-handedness".
Tensions had already surfaced before and during the Bankipur by-election.
On late July 29, Kishor visited the Jakkanpur police station after several Jan Suraaj workers were allegedly detained by the police where a large number of supporters accompanied him.
A video purportedly showing a heated exchange between Kishor and police officials at the police station subsequently circulated on the social media.
Earlier, Ajay Dwivedi, the Jan Suraaj election agent, had also accused the police administration of taking one-sided action against his party workers in the Bankipur Assembly constituency.
Dwivedi alleged that some Jan Suraaj workers who had travelled to Patna to meet family members or attend to personal matters were also detained.
He claimed that Pratyush was detained by Jakkanpur police, Varun Kumar by Pirbahore police, and Abhay Sharma, a resident of Motihari, by Jakkanpur police.
He also alleged that Vikas Singh, Amir Iftiyaz, Manish Jha and Sudarshan Mishra were picked up by the Bihar Police's Special Task Force.
The allegations have added another political dimension to the Bankipur by-election, which had already witnessed clashes and heated exchanges involving supporters of different political parties.
The matter is now expected to be examined by the election authorities.
Source: IANS
About Gopi
Gopi Adusumilli is a Programmer. He is the editor of SocialNews.XYZ and President of AGK Fire Inc.
He enjoys designing websites, developing mobile applications and publishing news articles on current events from various authenticated news sources.
When it comes to writing he likes to write about current world politics and Indian Movies. His future plans include developing SocialNews.XYZ into a News website that has no bias or judgment towards any.
He can be reached at gopi@socialnews.xyz