Prashant Bhushan beaten up by 2 youths

Prashant Bhushan beaten up by 2 youths

Lawyer Prashant Bhushan was beaten up by two youths suspected to be from Sriram Sena in his Supreme Court lawyers' chambers in New Delhi on Wednesday evening as they were upset with his stand on Jammu and Kashmir.
The attack on Bhushan, a prominent Team Anna member who is in the forefront of the fight for a strong Lokpal, came live on the TV screens when the three barged into Chamber No 301 of New Lawyers Chamber opposite Supreme Court, first slapped him, pulled his spectacles, beat him and pinned him to the ground after pushing him out of the chair and kicked him.
Bhushan's assistant who came to his help was also roughed up by the attackers before one of them was caught and beaten up by some people said to be lawyers and others, while the other two escaped.
Regaining his composure, Bhushan said it appeared that the youths targeted him for his stand on Jammu and Kashmir.
"They were saying that I have made some comments on Kashmir to which they were taking objection. I have said that a plebiscite should be held in Kashmir," he said.
He had in Varanasi last week said that there could be a referendum in Kashmir.
Bhushan claimed this comment angered the group which was behind the attack.
The attack triggered sharp reactions from Home Minister P Chidambaram, Anna Hazare and his team, Congress, BJP and CPI(M) who strongly condemned the incident.
Inder Verma (24), a resident of Karai Village in Nangloi, was arrested for the attack while a hunt is on to nab the other two.
Verma claimed to police that he was the president of Sri Ram Sene's Delhi unit.
Bhushan was later taken to the Ram Manohar Lohia hospital where Medical Superintendent T S Siddhu said his condition was alright and he has not suffered serious injuries.
Verma said he was beaten up by people inside the chambers and alleged that they would not have come to blows if the otherside would not have resorted to it.
"We would not have come to blows if they hadn't. We had only come to seek answers from them...we opposed it. We were three people. The issue was Kashmir. His views are an insult to our martyrs. It will not be tolerated," he said.
In Ralegan Siddhi, Hazare strongly condemned the attack, saying nobody has the right to take law on their hands.
Asked to comment on Bhushan's stand on Kashmir, which allegedly angered the youths, Hazare refused to comment.
On whether security should be provided to his team members, he said "I feel security should be given."
Chidambaram directed Delhi Police Commissioner B K Gupta to take appropriate action against the assailants.
"Nobody has the right to take law in their hands and I have asked the Delhi Police to take appropriate action against the people involved in the attack," he said.
Congress termed the attack as "barbaric" and demanded strict action against the attackers.
"No words are strong enough to condemn the barbaric attack," said party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi, himself a senior lawyer.
"The issue needed to be dealt with strictly so as to avoid recurrence of any such incident in future. No right- thinking people will support such kind of action," he said.
BJP too came out against the assault."BJP condemns any kind of violence against anybody. But the Congress dirty tricks department is capable of doing anything. Only a thorough inquiry will reveal the truth behind the incident," party spokesperson Prakash Javadekar said.
CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat said the attack was "reprehensible" and should be condemned in strong words.
"Those who conducted this attack cannot by these means suppress the right of anybody to express their opinion," Karat said.
Activist Kiran Bedi said it was absolutely shocking and shameful.
"I am very distressed. But you got evidence, I think these people will be in jail for a long time now".
"It shows the amount of intolerance level we have reached. I don't know what they are up for, but they don't know they are beating up such a good man who continues to work for the community day in and day out," Bedi said.
In social networking site 'Facebook', the account holder in the name of 'Bhagat Singh Kranti Sena' claimed they "hit Prashant Bhushan hard in his chamber in Supreme Court. If you will try to break my nation, I will break your head."
Condemning the attack, activists and intellectuals like Aruna Roy, Kuldip Nayyar and Medha Patkar said it only shows the "growing intolerance and contempt for any differing opinion" in a democratic country.
"Violence is not the way to express one's point of view in democracy...It is extremely condemnable that a group using the name of Bhagat Singh and in the name of patriotism resorts to such action. We condemn such a heinous attack," they said in a statemen