15 BJP members booked for manhandling BSP corporator during oath ceremony

An FIR was on Saturday registered against 15 unidentified BJP members for allegedly manhandling BSP corporator Musharraf Husain during the oath taking ceremony of Aligarh Municipal Corporation members earlier this week, police said today.

The case was filed at the Banna Devi police station under relevant sections of IPC, four days after the BSP corporator filed a complaint with the police.

The FIR against BJP members comes in the wake of mounting pressure by opposition parties alleging that the police was taking one-sided view of the entire episode.

SSP Rajesh Pandey told PTI that those responsible for the unsavoury incident would be identified on the basis of video recording of the oath taking ceremony.

He clarified that earlier a case was filed against the BSP corporator on the basis of a complaint filed by a BJP corporator, charging the former of trying to disrupt communal peace of the city during the ceremony.

The police officer also refuted allegations that Hussain was earlier booked because he took oath in Urdu.

“It is his constitutional right and there is no question of having booked him on that point,” Pandey said.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Yogesh Dikshit has demanded Z+ security for the newly elected mayor Mohammed Furqan in the wake of “serious threat to his life”.

Furqan of BSP had won the mayoral post in the just concluded civic body elections, upsetting the BJP’s applecart.

On Tuesday, unpleasant scenes had marred the swearing-in function of members of the Aligarh Municipal Corporation, with the BJP corporators allegedly creating ruckus after the lone BSP corporator, Musharraf Husain, insisted on taking oath in Urdu.

Husain, who was allegedly beaten up, had told media later that there was a conspiracy to kill him.