Tripura State Rifles jawans lathi charge traders for flouting

Tripura State Rifles jawans on Wednesday lathi charged traders at Maharajganja Bazar, the largest vegetable market in the city, for not wearing masks and flouting other lockdown guidelines, police said.

SP, West Tripura District, Manik Lal Das, said an inquiry into the incident has been ordered.

"Sadar Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Anirban Das will be in charge of the probe and submit a report at the earliest," Das told PTI.

Secretary of Maharajganj Bazaar Retail Vegetable Trader Association, Nakul Debnath, said around 30 traders were injured in the police action, and seven of them were administered first aid at the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital here.

Das, however, said "only a few people received minor injuries".

There are over 400 stalls at Maharajganj Bazaar, which were relocated to a nearby location to better adhere to social distancing norms, officials said.

Debnath said traders have decided not to open their shops for an indefinite period in protest against the "illegal and inhuman police action".