This Article is From Mar 07, 2019

Day After "Shoe Brawl", BJP Lawmaker Seeks Action Against Cops

Rakesh Singh Baghel said that he will abide by whatever decision the party high command takes on the matter

Day After 'Shoe Brawl', BJP Lawmaker Seeks Action Against Cops

The issue was most unfortunate and cannot be easily forgotten, Rakesh Singh Baghel

Lucknow:

A day after a fist fight and "shoe brawl" with BJP lawmaker Sharad Tripathi during an official meeting in Uttar Pradesh, BJP legislator Rakesh Singh Baghel started a sit-in demonstration demanding action against district and police officials, who he says lathi-charged his supporters.

Footage of the incident that took place in Uttar Pradesh's Sant Kabir Nagar, showed Mr Tripathi, also the area legislator, beating Mr Baghel with his slipper, after an argument over the placement of names on a foundation stone for a new project.

The fight was broken up by police officers present at the meeting. Till the very end of the video of the incident, the two lawmakers could be heard abusing each other.

UP cabinet minister Ashutosh Tandon was also present at the District Coordination Committee meeting.

Mr Baghel - lawmaker from Uttar Pradesh's Mehndaval - who has been summoned to Lucknow by the party state unit president Mahendra Nath Pandey along with Mr Tripathi, told news agency IANS that he will abide by whatever decision the party high command takes on the matter.

He also confirmed that he will meet Mr Pandey to discuss the incident.

"The issue was most unfortunate and cannot be easily forgotten but I, as a disciplined foot soldier of the party, will put the facts before the leadership and will accept whatever their decision is," Mr Baghel said.

Later, on Wednesday, Mr Baghel and a large number of his supporters protested outside the district magistrate's office demanding Mr Tripathi's arrest.

Speaking to news agency ANI, Mr Tripathi said, "I regret the incident and feel bad about it, what happened was against my normal behaviour. It's a reaction due to action and I did it in self-defence. If I am summoned by state chief then will put my point across."

(With inputs from Agencies)

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