By Scroll Staff
West Bengal Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday felicitated three men accused of assaulting Muslim vendors for selling non-vegetarian food at a Gita chanting event in Kolkata, PTI reported.
The Bharatiya Janata Party MLA said that he stood by them “as a Hindu” performing his duty.
The event, Panch Lokkho Konthe Gitapath (Gita recitation in five lakh voices), was organised on Sunday by the Sanatan Sanskriti Sansad, a collective of monks and Hindutva outfits. Several BJP leaders, including Adhikari and Samik Bhattacharyya, were also present.
Three Muslim vendors had alleged that they had been assaulted for selling non-vegetarian food at the event. Groups allegedly asked them their names, accused them of being “Bangladeshi infiltrators” and threw away their food items.
Two first information reports were registered after the event based on the complaints of two of the Muslim vendors, 50-year-old Sheikh Riyajul and 60-year-old Salauddin.
Late on Wednesday, three men, identified as Soumik Golder, Tarun Bhattacharya and Swarnendu Chakraborty, were arrested in connection with the assault, The Telegraph reported.
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