Akash Vijayvargiya, BJP legislator and son of senior BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya, thrashed a Municipal Corporation officer with a cricket bat on Wednesday.
The officer, who was in the area for an anti-encroachment drive, was beaten up with the cricket bat mercilessly and slapped three times before the police tried to stop the legislator.
A few bystanders also held the officer by his collar and slapped him repeatedly, while an unidentified man attempted to rip the officer's shirt apart.
Speaking to media after the incident, Akash, while narrating the sequence of events that unfolded, claimed that certain Congress legislators were getting buildings in Indore demolished in connivance with the Municipal Corporation without consulting him. Despite repeated requests to wait for proper investigation to be done before demolition, Akash claimed that officers paid no heed to his pleas and sent "gangs" to displace people from the structures that had to be demolished.
"I got to know that some buildings are being demolished by some Congress leaders in connivance with the Municipal Corporation. I requested them to keep me in the loop if any work is being done in my area, but they did not take me seriously. Two days ago, I got to know that a building is being demolished so I sent my workers to get a report and also send me pictures. I spoke to the Commissioner and asked for some time to investigate, and he agreed," Akash said.
"Commissioner agreed, but the next day I got to know that gangs were sent to displace people living in this building. Gangs dragged women out of their houses by their feet, women police should've been with them but they were not. When I reached there, people got angry at the officers and chased them away," he added.
When asked about the future course of action, Akash said an FIR will be lodged by him.
"This is the fifth building to be demolished. It is my responsibility to take care of people. I have requested many times to Municipal Corporation to inform me of the work being done. We will not tolerate this hooligsm and such malpractices. An FIR will be filed. We cannot see women being treated this way," he asserted.
The Indore MLA went on to say that this is just the beginning, adding that corruption will not be tolerated at any cost.
"I warned them to leave in ten minutes, or they will be responsible for the consequences. But they did not listen to me. This is just the beginning," he said, adding, "'Aavedan, nivedan aur fir dana dan' this is our line of action."
Indore Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) l Patidar said the matter is being investigated, adding that whoever is guilty will be punished.
( With inputs from ANI )