Agnipath protests: Cops hurt, vehicles torched in Bihar's Masaurhi & Jehanabad

PATNA: Nine GRP personnel were injured in violent clashes with the protesters at Taregna railway station in Patna district on Saturday while police arrested more than 700 people and lodged 138 FIRs on the basis of video footage and mobile tower locations in last three days of the protests against Agnipath scheme announced by the Centre to recruit youths for four years in the armed forces of the country.
A group of agitators torched several vehicles parked outside the Taregna railway station in Masaurhi and fired several rounds on the GRP and police personnel, who returned the fire and also used tear gas shells to disperse them. At least nine GRP and policemen were injured in stone pelting at taregna. Taregna station master’s office was torched while four vehicles, including a bus, were set on fire at Jehanabad. The protesters set ablaze the vehicle of Dumraon circle inspector Vimal Kumar at Navanagar in Buxar district. An ambulance was attacked and its driver thrashed in Arwal district. Four policemen were injured in stone pelting at Goh in Aurangabad district during the Bihar bandh called by some student organisations to press for the demand of withdrawal of the Agnipath scheme.
Several other policemen also got injured in stone pelting and vandalism in a few other districts
Since railway properties have been the soft target of the protesters, the East Central Railway (ECR) decided to run trains under its jurisdiction only from 8pm on Saturday to 4am on Sunday and during the same period from Sunday to Monday. Sixty train coaches and 10 locomotives have been torched so far in Bihar during the protests in the last three days.
10 state BJP netas get 'Y' category security
Keeping in view the attack on BJP offices and some of its leaders' residential premises in Bettiah on Friday, the Centre on Saturday has provided 'Y' category security of CRPF to 10 BJP leaders in Bihar, including two deputy CMs and MLAs. The BJP leaders, who have been provided 'Y' category security, include state BJP president Sanjay Jaiswal, deputy CMs Tar Kishore Prasad and Renu Devi, MLAs Hari Bhushan Thakur, Sanjay Saraogi, Sanjeev Chaurasia, Lok Sabha member Gopal Jee Thakur, MLCs Ashok Agarwal and Dilip Jaiswal. Incidentally, the houses of Sanjay Jaiswal and Renu Devi at Bettiah were attacked on Friday. Besides, BJP offices at Madhepura, Sasaram, Lahisarai and Nawada among other places were also vandalised.
The Bihar bandh was called by AISA, Rozgar Sangharsh Sanyukta Morcha and Sena Bharti Jawan Morcha. Left parties, RJD and Congress supported the bandh call. LJP (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan and JAP (L) chief Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav also came in support of the bandh at Patna.
ADG (law and order) Sanjay Singh told TOI that students mostly did not participate in the bandh on Saturday. "All districts will continue to be on high alert. So far, 138 FIRs have been filed and 700 persons have been arrested for vandalising and damaging public properties during the protests over the last three days," he said. "It has been found that antisocial elements have mostly indulged in violent protests. If students or aspirants are found involved in such violent protests, it will hamper their selection in government jobs in future," he said.
In order to prevent rumourmongering, the home department on Friday evening suspended internet services in 15 districts, including Kaimur, Bhojpur, Aurangabad, Rohtas, Buxar, Nawada, West Champaran, East Champaran, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Samastipur, Lakhisarai, Begusarai, Vaishali and Saran. Sanjay said no district was added to the internet suspension list on Saturday.