BJD Moves CEO Demanding Action against BJP Leader Prasant Jagdev

Bhubaneswar: The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Friday moved the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Odisha demanding action against BJP leader Prasant Jagdev for allegedly intimidating a police officer misusing the name of the Election Commission of India and physically assaulting a working journalist in Khurda district.

The BJD alleged that BJP leader Prasant Jagdev has not only personally physically beaten up a journalist but also called up and threatened the local Inspector-In-Charge to tear off the FIR filed by the assaulted journalist.

This incident happened yesterday during a Padayatra of the Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha MP candidate from Bhubaneswar Aparajita Sarangi in which this BJP leader Prasant Jagdev was present. This Padayatra was being done at Chanagiri in Jankia, Khurda district. A few media persons who were covering this Odisha BJP party programme asked few questions to BJP leader Prasant Jagdev who became so angry as to how the journalists could ask him questions, that he in his rage of anger snatched away the mobile phone and physically assaulted and thrown down journalist Prakash Hati, District Correspondent of Naxatra News and District President of Odisha Union of Working Journalists (OUWJ), Khurda.

Due to this the journalist was severely injured in the neck, back and right leg. Jagdev also threatened to kill the journalist. The journalist then registered an FIR at the Jankia Police Station under whose jurisdiction this incident took place. After Jagdev came to know that the journalist has filed an FIR, he called up the local IIC of Jankia PS and threatened him that if he did not tear off the FIR, then he along with his supporters would gherao the Police Station and cause rampage. Jagdev further threatened misusing the name of the Election Commission of India, that if he didn’t do as Jagdev wanted then he would ensure the transfer and punitive action against the Police IIC through the ECI, the BJD alleged.