Day after attack, Cong ex-MLA blames BJP legislator, drug mafia

A day after he was shot at inside his residence in Bilaspur during Holi celebrations, former Congress MLA Bumber Thakur today claimed that he had been assaulted by the drug mafia as he had been raising his voice against it.

While talking to mediapersons at Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital, Shimla, where he is being treated, Thakur alleged that Trilok Jamwal, BJP MLA from Bilaspur, had given political patronage to ‘chitta’ smugglers. He further claimed that shooters from Haryana were responsible for the incident.

Thakur, his personal security officer (PSO) and a couple of other persons were injured in the shooting on Friday afternoon. As per the IGMC authorities, Thakur has suffered a bullet injury in his upper thigh and is stable. The police said the investigation into the incident was on and various people were being questioned to identify and arrest the attackers at the earliest.

Meanwhile, Thakur urged Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu to provide security to him and his family stating that their lives were under threat. “I have been attacked six times and my life is constantly in danger. They could kill me at any time,” he said.

“I had applied for a pistol licence, the approval for which is still awaited. I might have been able to protect myself if I had a weapon,” said Thakur.

Condemning the assault on Thakur as well as the allegations levelled by him, Jamwal said the attack was a result of gang wars that had been taking place in Bilaspur ever since the Congress came to power.

“It’s not long back that there was a firing incident in the court complex and we all know whose son had to go to jail for two months for the incident,” said Jamwal. Demanding immediate arrest of the attackers, Jamwal sought an impartial investigation into the matter, preferably by a committee headed by a judge of the High Court. “If the attackers are not apprehended by tomorrow evening, the BJP will call for a complete shutdown of Bilaspur on Monday,” he said.

Accusing the government of poor governance, Jamwal said four police superintendents had been appointed in Bilaspur district over the past two years. “Whenever a major incident occurs, the SP is replaced,” he added. He questioned the role of the CID and intelligence agencies in the district and the state.

Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur said the law and order situation in the state had collapsed. “It is not the first time that bullets have been fired in broad daylight in Bilaspur. No strict action was taken by the police in earlier incidents. If the police had taken strict action earlier, we would not have seen such incidents,” Thakur said, demanding strict action against the miscreants.

Meanwhile, a four-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been constituted by the police to investigate the attack on Bumber Thakur. The SIT will be headed by Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Soumya Sambasivan while Bilaspur Superintendent of Police (SP) Sandeep Dhawal, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Chander Paul and SHO Harnam Singh will serve as its members. Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Gyaneshwar Singh will supervise the work of SIT.