BJP West Bengal in-charge Kailash Vijayvargiya. (Sonu Mehta/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)Bharatiya Janata Party national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya and leader Mukul Roy were detained on Friday (7 February) when they tried to take out a pro-Citizenship (Amendment) Act rally in south Kolkata, reports Hindustan Times.
“We don’t expect such behavior from the police. The way we were stopped and arrested is authoritarianism and unconstitutional. We were supporting the CAA in a democratic manner. The entire country is supporting it. We condemn the way the government is trying to stop us,” Vijayvargiya told reporters before boarding a police van, said the report.
Meeraj Khalid, deputy commissioner of Kolkata Police (south division), said that the BJP leaders have not been arrested, rather been detained.
The proposed BJP rally, from Tollygunge Phanri to Hazra More, was scheduled to commence around 1 pm. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s residence is near Hazra. Police however put up several barricades to stop the rally since 11:30 am.
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