Congress leader lodges police complaint against Dhanbad district party president

Suresh Chandra Jha was on indefinite hunger strike regarding reopening of a now shut 1954 party office in Dhanbad and was allegedly threatened by Santosh Singh to call off the agitation.

A senior Congress leader has lodged a complaint against party’s Dhanbad president Santosh Singh for allegedly abusing and threatening him with dire consequences.

Suresh Chandra Jha, who is also INTUC state secretary, lodged the complaint at Chirkunda police station, some 200-km from capital Ranchi, and alleged that Singh called him at 8:35 pm on Saturday demanding that he cancel his proposed hunger strike at Congress headquarters in Ranchi from Monday.

Chirkunda police station officer in-charge Sunil Kumar Singh said he received Jha's complaint. "The matter is being investigated," he said.

“The district president abused me and threatened with dire consequences if I do not call off my agitation. He also challenged that I would not be able to reach Ranchi,” Jha said.

Santosh Singh, however, refuted the allegations. "Jha is doing this after being misled by some persons," he said.

Jha had announced to stage an indefinite hunger strike at the state Congress headquarters for reopening the Luby Circular Road-based Dhanbad party office, which has been closed since April 2011.

Jha alleged that state leaders are not interested to reopen the office which was originally set up in 1954.