Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan washing feet of Tribal victim (Image: Twitter)
On July 4, a video of man urinating on another man’s face went viral on social media. Both the accused and the victim were from the Sidhi district of Madhya Pradesh. As per the reports, the video is a year old and was recently posted by a third-party link.
The accused man was arrested by the MP police, on July 5 and was booked under the stringent NSA (National Security Act). One-third of his house, build over illegal land was demolished by the district administration.
The accused has been identified as Pravesh Shukla, whereas the victim is, Dashmat Rawat, a vanvasi.
Notably, the Chief Minister of the state Shivraj Singh Chouhan took cognizance of the matter from social media platforms and responded immediately. Posts from his handle related to the inhumane act were coming subsequently. On July 5, Chouhan informed that he is deeply saddened by the act and hence has called Dashmat Rawat to his residence.
Chouhan wrote on Twitter, “Ever since I saw the video of Sidhi’s incident, my heart is deeply disturbed and filled with pain. Since then I wanted to meet Dashmat ji and share his sorrow and also wanted to assure him that he would get justice. I will meet him and his family tomorrow at his residence in Bhopal and express my condolences to the family.”
Today (July 6), visuals of Chouhan washing the feet of Rawat, and extending his gratitude by offering a shawl and coconut were shared on social media.
Sharing a video and pictures from the day, Chouhan wrote, “My heart is deeply saddened; Dashmat ji, this is an attempt to share your pain, I also apologize to you, for me the public is God!”
Sharing the video Chouhan said, will not tolerate any inhumane behaviour in Madhya Pradesh. “I am sharing this video with you so that everyone should understand that Shivraj Singh Chouhan is in Madhya Pradesh, so the public is God. Atrocities with anyone will not be tolerated. The respect of every citizen of the state is my respect,” he added.
The incident has become a major political talking point in the poll-bound state and sparked a huge outrage.
Earlier, the Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) of Sidhi, Anjulata Patle said, “We have taken the accused (Pravesh Shukla) into custody. He is under interrogation. Further legal action in the matter will be taken soon.”
A case has been registered against the accused under sections 294, 504 of the Indian Penal Code and SC/ST Act.
On the other hand, the opposition called this an ‘insult’ to tribal communities. Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath said that the incident is an attack on tribal identity and an insult to great personalities like Tantya Mama and Birsa Munda.
In a video, Nath said, “Today I am deeply saddened by the incidents of humiliation of tribal people of Madhya Pradesh. One gets disturbed after seeing the video of a BJP leader (Pravesh Shukla) urinating on a tribal man in Sidhi district. Has the power hit the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders to such an extent that they are not considering human beings as human?”
Union minister and tribal leader Faggan Singh Kulaste has blamed the administration’s action. Condemning the act, he said that no matter which political party the accused belongs to, he does not have the right to do such heinous acts. Such people should get the strictest action. He said that if the wrongdoer supports any party, then I do not consider it right.
MLA and Congress working President Jitu Patwari announced in a press conference on Wednesday and said that Congress MLAs will meet the Governor on July 10 with a list of atrocities committed on tribals and they will give a point-wise report to the Governor Mangubhai C Patel.
“On July 10, under the leadership of Leader of Opposition Govind Singh, all Congress MLAs will meet the Governor, will inform him point-wise about the atrocities on tribals in Madhya Pradesh,” Jitu Patwari said in a press conference.
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