Jhunjhunu: A political controversy has erupted after police conducted a search operation at a hotel in Mandawa in Jhunjhunu district amid the fencing of councillors following the municipal body elections.Led by Rural Jhunjhunu DSP, police teams from three police stations, along with QRT, searched the hotel. According to police, the councillor they were looking for was not found during the operation.Malsisar SHO said a search warrant had been issued by Malsisar SDM. The warrant referred to information that Santkumar, a councillor elected on a Congress ticket from Ward No. 3 of Malsisar, had been confined. Following this, police personnel from Malsisar, Dhanuri and Mandawa police stations, along with the QRT team, reached the hotel and conducted the search. Police said Santkumar was not found at the hotel, after which the team returned.A video of the police search has gone viral on social media, with Congress leaders and workers questioning the action. Congress alleged that the police team entered the hotel by scaling the wall and harassed councillors present in the camp and their family members. However, according to information from police, the team had reached the hotel on the basis of a search warrant. The allegations of entering by scaling the wall and harassing councillors have not been independently confirmed so far.Mandawa MLA and Jhunjhunu Congress district president Rita Chaudhary questioned the police action. She said a camp of newly elected Congress councillors was underway when a large number of police personnel suddenly reached the hotel.According to Rita Chaudhary, police officers told her they had a search warrant, but did not show it to her when asked. She said police cited a complaint by the wife of a councillor, which said her husband’s life was under threat. Rita Chaudhary alleged that political pressure may have been put on the councillor. She said the councillor concerned had stated that he had come to the camp of his own free will.Rita Chaudhary accused BJP govt of alleged misuse of police and administration, and said Congress workers would not be scared. She claimed Congress would form boards in all three municipalities — Mandawa, Malsisar and Bisau. She said Congress had a full majority in Mandawa and was also in a majority in Malsisar. Describing the contest in Bisau as close, she said a swing of one vote there would be significant.PCC chief Govind Dotasra also shared the video on social media. He alleged that BJP govt was using govt machinery and the police system to intimidate Congress and independent councillors. Dotasra asked whether the role of police had now been reduced to guarding Congress camps and putting pressure on elected public representatives.After the recent civic polls, political allegations and counter-allegations have surfaced in several cities of Rajasthan over the fencing of councillors and the presence of police. The police action at the Mandawa hotel and Congress’s allegations over the operation are now under discussion, while attention will remain on what further action is taken at the official level.Malsisar SDM did not respond to phone calls.
