Manhandled by Bengal hotel staff, says Bihar Minister

Bihar's Urban Development and Housing Minister Suresh Sharma, who was allegedly manhandled by hotel employees in West Bengal's Tarapith, on Tuesday alleged complete collapse of law and order in the state and said the incident was a plot to insult him.

"There is no rule of law in Bengal. This was a well-planned conspiracy to insult a minister like me. We contacted the local police station several times after the incident but no one came for nearly one-and-half hours," he alleged.

"Even when they came, they were reluctant to lodge the complaint. After a lot of discussions, they finally filed the case at around 2.00 a.m. I think police were also involved in the conspiracy," Sharma, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Bihar, added.

Sharma was in Birbhum district's Tarapith, a temple town some 220 km from Kolkata, to offer prayers. He and his men had a dispute with the hotel employees on Monday over refund.

His men lodged a police case complaining that the hotel employees attacked them and abused Sharma when they asked for refund of the booking amount after finding the accommodation was not up to the mark.

They also alleged that the men at the hotel tried to snatch the weapon of the Minister's security guard.

The hotel authorities, however, refuted the allegation and claimed that the Minister's men attacked them in a drunken state and vandalised the hotel's reception.

--IANS

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