Patidars clash with police in Botad during dharna demnding Hardik Patel’s release

Around 1000 Patidars and their supporters sat on started their one-day token hunger strike near the office of Botad DySP on Paliyad Road from 10 AM on under the leadership of Dilip Sabva, convenor of Botad district convenor of Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS). Dhirajlal Patel, president of Botad district unit of Congress and Prabhat Yadav, president of Botad district panchayat also joined the agitating Patidars.

However, police asked the demonstrators to disperse as they did not have permission to hold protests. But Patidars did not budge. Eventually, police detained Sabva, the Congress president and 32 others, including five women at 11:50 AM and took them to  the police station. However, rest of the demonstrators followed the detainees to the police station. To ward them off, police closed the gates of a police station.

The mob camped outside the police station till around 2:30 PM when those detained were released. But in the meanwhile, a few Patidars again sat on dharna at the same place. They clashed with police when cops asked them to vacate the place.

“We told the agitators that they did not have permission. But they refused to budge from their position, forcing us to resort to mild baton-charge,” Jaypaplsinh Jadeja, in-charge police inspector of Botad told The Indian Express.

However, Sabva alleged that police used force without provocation. “After we were released form detention, our supporters went to the place of dharna to take their vehicles and disperse. However, a few anti-social elements aligned with the BJP incited our young supporters. This led to a clash with the police,” said the PAAS leader.

After the lathi-charge the demonstrators dispersed. Police and PAAS leaders said nobody was injured in the lathi-charge.

Sabva had sought permission for the one-day hunger strike but police had not granted. “We rejected the application as the venue of their protest could block traffic. Moreover, the venue did not have enough space where 2,000 to 2,500 people can assemble. On top of all this, we also took into account incidents of violence during similar programmes in other districts and did not grant them permission,” the police inspector said.

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