Prohibitory orders in Jharkhand town as Congress, Ajsu Party fight over Sardar Patel statue

Prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPC were imposed in a part of Jharkhand's Ramgarh town after a dispute between the Ajsu Party and the Congress over the installation of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's statue led to tension in the area, a senior official said on Wednesday. The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) removed a statue of the country's first home minister here a year ago for the construction of a flyover. They were supposed to reinstall the statue after the project is complete.

Irked by the 'delay', the Ajsu Party has conducted Bhoomi Puja for its reinstallation on "government land" near the spot where it was earlier erected, a party leader said. The Congress, however, objected to it, claiming that the land belonged to a person who did not give permission for holding such a programme.

An FIR was registered against Ajsu Party MP Chandra Prakash Chaudhary on Tuesday on the charge of assaulting a man who claimed that the plot belonged to him.


Ramgarh Sub-divisional Officer Md Javed Hussain told PTI that prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPc have been imposed on Tuesday in an area near National Highway 33 in the wake of the dispute between members of two political parties over Sardar Patel's statue.

While the Congress is a constituent of the ruling coalition of Jharkhand, Ajsu Party was part of the previous BJP-led government in the state.

Chaudhary, along with his supporters, on Sunday started Bhoomi Puja on a plot along NH 33 near Patel Chowk in Ramgarh, which was objected to by Congress district media in-charge Mukesh Yadav and others.

Later, Congress district president Munna Paswan alleged that the Ajsu Party MP thrashed Yadav when he objected to the Bhoomi Puja.

Ajsu Party district president Dilip Dangi claimed that the FIR was registered on the basis of false charges.

AJSU leader and vice chairman Ramgarh Municipal Corporation Manoj Mahto said that the statue was earlier installed at Patel chowk on the party's initiative and it had signed a tripartite pact when it was removed.

"The government had promised to reinstall the statue but did not do it so far. We had plans to install the statue on government land near Patel Chowk but the Congress foiled it," he said.

NHAI Project Director Vijay Kumar told PTI that Sardar Patel's statue was removed from the highway roundabout for the construction of a four-lane flyover and they would reinstall it once it is done.