BJP worker allegedly beaten up by J&K MLA Engineer Rashid's supporters

Srinagar: A BJP worker was allegedly thrashed on Thursday by supporters of Independent MLA Sheikh Abdul Rashid and some locals when he objected to the lawmaker’s targeting of Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the killing of a civilian in the south Kashmir town. [caption id=“attachment_2594352” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Sheikh Abdul Rashid. AFP[/caption] Shabir Ahmad, who claims to be the youth president of the district BJP unit, entered into a verbal duel with the supporters of Rashid, who had staged a sit-in in Pulwama town against the killing of a youth in firing by security forces during stone-pelting protests after an encounter on Wednesday. Initially, police personnel intervened and separated the two groups. Later, as the BJP worker was talking to the media, a group of local youths pounced on him and the policemen had to come to his rescue a second time. Following the incident, BJP media in-charge Altaf Thakur has demanded registration of a case against the supporters of the Independent MLA who were involved in the assault on Shabir. Shabir claimed that “they had painted a picture of the prime minister with blood” and he was “protesting against it”. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the MLA denied the allegations. “We had organised a peaceful sit-in in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office in Pulwama against the brutal killing of Parvaiz Ahmad Guru by security forces yesterday in the district. “Scores of volunteers led by Rashid started the protest early this morning and were soon joined by hundreds of locals,” he said. Rashid demanded the arrest of the personnel involved in the killing of the youth during the stone-pelting protests on Wednesday and rejected any magisterial probe, claiming that such inquiries have yielded nothing except provide cover to the killers. “It is shameful that police tried to justify the killing by dubbing Parvaiz a mobster. Let police answer if being part of a mob is such a heinous crime that someone should be murdered?” charged Rashid. PTI