Rae Bareli, Aug 6 Swami Prasad Maurya, the national president of Apni Janata Party (AJP), was attacked by an unidentified person on Wednesday, who slapped the leader from behind after garlanding him.
The assailant was subsequently caught and thrashed by Maurya's supporters.
The incident happened during Maurya's visit to Raebareli.
While the five-time legislator and former minister in the Yogi Adityanath government was meeting and greeting his supporters and well-wishers, who assembled to welcome him, he was hit from behind on the head.
The entire incident was caught on camera and soon went viral on social media.
In the video, the AJP chief can be seen being hit by the attacker, who tries to flee the spot but is nabbed and beaten black and blue by the leader's supporters.
While his supporters gave him a grand welcome by garlanding him with flowers, another person with a garland came closer to him and slapped him from behind, until being whisked away by his supporters.
Though the impact on the AJP president was minimal, the attacker was quickly taken down by his supporters and security guards.
The assailant was brutally thrashed in the presence of police, leading to chaotic scenes at the spot. However, the police personnel managed to disperse Maurya's supporters while calming down their tempers.
Following the slapping incident, Maurya, the erstwhile BJP minister, slammed the Yogi Adityanath government for the "lawlessness" in the state and accused it of turning a blind eye to "hooligans" in the state.
He also claimed that the accused was a member of Karni Sena, who attacked him in the presence of police personnel.
Maurya is a veteran politician of Uttar Pradesh, having notable stints with all parties, including the Bahujan Samaj Party (1996-2006), BJP (2016-22) and Samajwadi Party (2022-24).
The veteran leader has a history of courting controversy with his objectionable and distasteful remarks on Hindu religious texts, particularly Ramcharitmanas.
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