DEHRADUN: A sub-inspector was suspended after reports emerged about him laughing while

and Congress workers were purportedly seen kicking and slapping each other at the opposition party’s headquarters in Dehradun over Rafale issue on December 19.

Sub-inspector Shanti Prasad from

police station was seen laughing by others as BJP members purportedly barged into the Congress headquarters at Rajpur Road in an alleged bid to stop Congress working committee member Kumari Shailja’s from holding a press conference on Rafale deal. SSP Nivedita Kukreti told TOI that the policeman was suspended on Saturday for “dereliction of duty” during the clash. “He was seen standing and letting protesters break barriers. He was suspended for dereliction of duty,” she said.

The sub-inspector told TOI that he has been on leave since Thursday and was not aware of why he had been suspended.

Meanwhile, police also booked 30 unidentified men under sections 147 (Punishment for rioting), 332 (Voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty) and 353 (Assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of the IPC.

Congress leaders alleged that the FIR had been deliberately filed against unidentified men.

Congress district president Lal Chand Sharma said, “Police have suspended a sub-inspector who was seen laughing and letting BJP workers break barricades. But they have turned a blind eye to presence of BJP workers there.”

The FIR was filed on Saturday after Congressmen met ADG L&O as well as governor Baby Rani Maurya seeking action in the matter.