Patna students continue stir, politicians join them

PATNA - Tension mounted in the Bihar capital Wednesday as students continued their protest for the second day against fleecing by coaching institutes and politicians jumped on to the bandwagon.

The students thrashed the owner of a private coaching institute, vandalised property and tore banners and posters of other institutes in the area.

Former Member of Parliament Pappu Yadav was arrested after he went to meet the students at Bazar Samiti locality here to express solidarity and also criticised Tuesday’s police action against them.

Yadav submitted a memorandum to Bihar Governor Debanand Konwar demanding that all coaching institutes be closed.

The Patna district administration held a meeting with student leaders to redress their grievances amid continued tension, a day after one student, Sachin Sharma, was killed in firing by a security guard of a coaching centre.

Several other students were injured in clashes with police Tuesday as over 1,000 students rampaged to protest alleged cheating by the coaching institutes.

Lok Janshakti Party chief Ram Vilas Paswan visited the injured students in Patna Medical College and Hospital Wednesday and announced that his party’s student wing will observe a protest day across the state Thursday against police action on students.

Opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad and Congress leaders also condemned the police action against students.

The state government has announced an ex gratia of Rs.1.5 lakh for Sharma’s family.

Patna Senior Superintendent of Police Vineet Vinayak Wednesday said that police staged a flag march to maintain law and order here even as protests spread to nearby towns of Barh and Ara.

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has ordered Patna District Magistrate Jitendra Prasad to probe allegations of malpractices against coaching institutes and assured students that action would be taken against these institutes if they are found guilty.

–Indo Asian News Service