A man accused of urinating on the face of a tribal in MP’s Sidhi was arrested and booked under the National Security Act (NSA). Even as protests by Dalits and tribals broke out in some areas of the state, including Indore, a portion of his home was demolished by the authorities.
Suspect Pravesh Shukla was apprehended from the outskirts of his native village, Kubri, some 630 km east of Bhopal. He faces charges also under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act and IPC for obscenity and intentional insult to provoke breach of peace. Sidhi SP Ravindra Verma said, “The accused has been booked under NSA and the illegal construction at his house in Kubri has been razed. We have also arrested the person who shot that video and booked him under the IT Act.”
Teams from the district administration and police went to Pravesh's ancestral home in Kubri to inspect the plot and building details. According to sources, they discovered that roughly a third of it had been constructed illegally and that portion has been demolished, according to sources.
The incident has triggered political turmoil in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, especially because of pictures and posters on social media that allege Pravesh has links with Sidhi BJP MLA Kedarnath Shukla. The lawmaker has said Pravesh isn’t even a BJP member and denied that he is his representative, but the accused’s father told mediapersons that Pravesh had been working as the lawmaker’s representative for years.
Shivraj washes feet of tribal
Amid nationwide outrage over the incident, CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, meanwhile, apologised to the victim and washed his feet at the CM house, offered him a shawl and an idol of Lord Ganesha. Expressing regret over the shocking incident, Chouhan said he is overwhelmed with anguish. Chouhan spoke with the victim’s wife over phone and offered apologies to her as well. Chouhan tweeted a video of him washing the victim’s feet with a message: “This is an attempt to share your pain. I also apologise to you. For me, the public is God… 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 against anyone will not be tolerated. The respect of every citizen of the state is my respect. ”