Khurda: Strongly protesting the arrest of its Khurda MLA candidate Prashant Jagdev, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday demanded his immediate release, and threatened to observe a shutdown in the town if he is not set free in 24 hours.
Senior BJP leaders of Khurda district told reporters that Jagdev, who is now MLA from Chilika, was about to cast his vote during polling on Saturday when someone kicked the Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) inside the booth.
As a result, the EVM fell on the ground and broke, while Jagdev was accused of indulging in violence and creating ruckus in the booth as part of a conspiracy to defame him, they said.
Terming the allegation as false and baseless, the BJP leaders alleged that Jagdev was picked up illegally by the police when he was travelling with Bhubaneswar MP.
“We will gherao the sub-collector’s office in Khurda and block the National Highway. A bandh will also be observed in the town if Jagdev is not released by tomorrow,” they said.
It may be noted that Chilika legislator Jagdev has been arrested for allegedly damaging an EVM during the third-round polling in Odisha on Saturday.
According to sources, the incident took place when the legislator and his wife had gone to cast their votes at booth number 114 in Bolagarh. He was detained by police from Begunia for questioning on the basis of a complaint filed by the presiding officer and then taken to the reserve police camp, where he was later arrested. He has been sent to judicial custody.
