POLITICAL CLASHES like the one between the ABVP and the Samajwadi Chhatra Sabha activists on Tuesday during the filing of nomination papers for the students’ union election of Harishchandra Post Graduate College have spurred a feeling of terror into the minds of the common people here.
Prior to yesterday’s incident of violence, students used to be seen targeting government property and vehicles, but on Tuesday, irate students targeted vehicles carrying patients and passengers including ladies and kids. The agitated students also broke window panes of cars and auto-rickshaws.
This was not the only instance of violence between political activists. BJP and SP activists also clashed with each other during local body election in Chetganj area. Bomb attacks, arson were part of the violence and common voters were a worried lot.
In another example of vindictive politics, Congress activists tore and burnt hoardings and banners of Samajwadi Party in Varanasi during its jail bharo stir.
Following this, activists of Samajwadi Party did a tit for tat. They also tore banners and hoardings of the Congress party throughout the city on the next day of Congress’s agitation in the city.
One Sanjay Shukla, resident of Lanka area, said the changing attitude of political activists was tarnishing the peaceful image of Varanasi. ‘Innocent people were the worst sufferers of aggressive politics’, he said and added, “A sense of vindictive politics prevailed among the workers of different political parties at the grass-roots level.”
{{/usCountry}}One Sanjay Shukla, resident of Lanka area, said the changing attitude of political activists was tarnishing the peaceful image of Varanasi. ‘Innocent people were the worst sufferers of aggressive politics’, he said and added, “A sense of vindictive politics prevailed among the workers of different political parties at the grass-roots level.”
{{/usCountry}}Rajesh Chaturvedi, resident of Assi area, echoed the same and said it was not the fault of student activists but it was the fault of main bodies of the political parties which were showing the path of vindictive politics to its student wings.