VHP thugs ransack Bokaro Post office for selling valentines day cards

The Telegraph

VHP V-Day rage singes post office

by Shashank Shekhar

The ransacked head post office in Bokaro. Picture by Pankaj Singh

Bokaro, Feb. 12: More than a dozen activists of Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) went on the rampage at the recently upgraded head post office of Bokaro steel city in Sector II today in protest against the sale of Valentine’s Day cards.

Hurling a volley of abuses, the protesters damaged property worth thousand of rupees, injuring an employee in the process.

The employees immediately informed the police, who rushed to the spot and managed to arrest three VHP leaders while the rest fled. The arrested have been identified as Vinod Ojha, Virendra Kumar Singh and Arjun Singh.

Sources said that around 12.30pm, a group of VHP workers suddenly barged into the post office. “They demanded to know why Valentine’s Day cards were being sold at counter number IX instead of revenue stamps. Shouting slogans, they went on the rampage, shattering the counter glasses and forcing the customers and employees to run for cover,” said an eye witness.

Shashi Das, who was sitting at counter number IX, tried to ward off the youths when a huge chunk of glass hit him on his head. He was rushed to a nursing home. His condition was stated to be stable.

Hearing the commotion, acting postmaster Laldeo Singh rushed in to pacify the youths. He said that they were only following government rules. But the youths did not pay any heed to Singh’s pleas. They continued with the rampage till the police arrived.

Later, the employees of the post office lodged an FIR against the activists at City police station for causing obstruction in government job and attacking government employees. The post office was modernised and reopened on January 23 this year

Singh told TheTelegraph that there was nothing abnormal in selling Valentine’s Day cards. “The VHP workers attacked the office for reasons best known to them,” he said.

Officer in-charge of City police station Ratan Deo Singh said: “We have arrested three persons for ransacking the post office, forcefully stopping work there and injuring an employee. We have decided to depute a police team at the post office to avert such incidents in the future.”