Eight arrested Left activists sent to police custody

Eight persons, including four women, who were part of a group of nearly 100 protesters arrested on Thursday for allegedly blocking a busy city road and falling out with the police, were sent to police custody on Friday, police said.

"Out of the 99 people arrested yesterday (Thursday) from Kolkata's Dorina Crossing, eight people including four women are remanded to the police custody till March 14," Joint Commissioner of Police (Headquarters) Supratim Sarkar said.

"The accused are charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for unlawful assembly, rioting and voluntarily causing hurt and applying criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty. They are also convicted under the recently passed West Bengal Maintenance of Public Order Amendment Act, 2017," he said.

Several activists of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) and the Students Federation of India (SFI) participated in a "March to Raj Bhavan" to protest alleged corruption in appointment of primary teachers and to press for "transparency in recruitment" on Thursday afternoon.

According to police, the agitators blocked Dorina Crossing for nearly 25 minutes and refused to leave the spot even after repeated requests by the police.

Eight security personnel, including four women, were injured while trying to remove them from the spot by "using minimal force". A total of 99 protesters, including 12 women, were arrested by the Kolkata Police.

--IANS

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