Bihar BJP MLA holds protest with umbrella

PATNA: Taking cue from Trinamool Congress parliamentarians, a BJP MLA today staged an agitation in front of the state Assembly with a black umbrella, demanding jobs for relatives of the four slain fishermen in Paliganj in Patna district.

The MLA from Paliganj Usha Vidyarthi, holding a black umbrella with slogans, protested at the main entrance of the Assembly. She, along with her supporters, even blocked Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi's way for sometime as he was entering the Assembly.

She later sat on a dharna in front of the Assembly entrance, pressing the chief minister to accept her demand. Vidyarthi did not attend the House in pre-lunch session and continued with her dharna which ended at the request of the Leader of the Opposition Nand Kishore Yadav.

Vidyarthi told reporters that no action had been taken even a week after of the killing of four fishermen by unidentified assailants on December 14 in Paliganj.

She said the umbrella pointed towards the fact that " Bihar under the present regime has turned black like umbrella where there is no protection for poor."

The incident took place at Mungila village, located about 35 km from Patna, as armed assailants barged into the houses of some fishermen and fired at random, killing four on the spot.

The event appeared to be a fallout of dispute between the fishermen and assailants who had demanded fish free of cost from the fishermen earlier in the day, police had said.