SP leader Azam Khan confronted a magistrate after he had to walk on mud.
Highlights
- Azam Khan had reportedly been forced to walk on a muddy stretch
- His car was not allowed to drive up to the counting centre
- He threatened the government official who was reportedly responsible
A huge outburst over a bit of mud, caught on camera, has led senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan to a totally unexpected slip. On the day of counting, while his party got routed by the BJP, Mr Khan had won - one of the 47 Samajwadi Party leaders to do so. But to collect his certificate, he reportedly had to walk through a muddy stretch. The infuriated leader had allegedly lashed out at the sub-divisional magistrate, who went by the rules and had not allowed the former minister's car into the counting centre.
The former minister threatened him multiple times -- an exchange that was caught on camera. "The election code of conduct is in place now, but it will be off in a few days and then, I'll take action against you," Mr Khan is heard saying in the video footage to Abhay Kumar Gupta, the Sub Divisional magistrate of Rampur Sadar.
The official is seen hanging his head as the controlled fury of the former minister washed over him.
"Is this why I brought you here? You had cried and asked for a transfer. You change colours this easily? Suppose I had fallen down? There would have been a tamasha," the 68-year-old leader is heard saying in the video.
The official is yet to register a complaint.
A senior minister in the earlier Akhilesh Yadav government, Mr Khan is no stranger to controversy. Three years ago, his lost buffaloes had given sleepless nights to the state police. While three policemen were suspended for "dereliction of duty" for failing to trace the lost bovines, the former minister had blamed the media for making too much of the matter.
Last year, his comment dubbing the appalling gang-rape of a woman and her teenage daughter in Bulandshahr as an "opposition conspiracy" had drawn the wrath of activists and the civil society.
The BJP -- which suggested that the government, if it had "an ounce of shame" should try to catch the perpetrators -- had made law and order one of its key election planks. Mr Khan's party, which had entered an alliance with the Congress, had been trounced, with the BJP and its allies sweeping 325 of the state's 403 seats.