A police officer in Madhya Pradesh faced the wrath of a BJP MLA for turning off Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s mike in line with the poll panel’s Model Code of Conduct during an election rally in Madhya Pradesh.
The incident was reported on Thursday night in Bhojpur assembly segment of Vidisha constituency, from where the BJP has fielded Shivraj Chouhan as its Lok Sabha candidate.
While Shivraj Chouhan was addressing the poll rally, Mahendra Singh Thakur, the in-charge of Mandideep police station, reportedly turned off the mike as the poll code suggests that the candidates should end their campaign by 10 pm.
After the mike was turned off, Shivraj Chouhan was seen questioning the cop’s conduct in a video. “Why did you turn the mike off, it’s 10 pm yet, switch it on again, just remove him (concerned cop) from here,” said Mr Chouhan.
The former MP minister and local BJP MLA Surendra Patwa, however, seething in anger not just questioned the cop’s conduct, but also threatened him with dire consequences.
“Come here, you will be thrown to such a place that it wouldn’t be possible to return. He (the cop) is creating a lot of trouble,” Mr Patwa – nephew of former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Sunder Lal Patwah -was seen telling the cop in the video, before local BJP leaders and workers stopped him.
The mike was later turned on.
The Congress has hit out at the BJP after the video went viral.
“Look at BJP’s arrogance. Shivraj Singh Chaouhan is raising questions over the implementation of the election code of conduct and Surendra Patwa misbehaving and threatening the police station in-charge Mahendra Singh Thakur. Extremely indecent and condemanable act,” the Madhya Pradesh Congress posted on its official handle on X – earlier known as Twitter.
बीजेपी का अहंकार देखो
चुनाव आचार संहिता का पालन कराने पर बीजेपी के मंच से पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री शिवराज सिंह चौहान ने सवाल किये और सुरेंद्र पटवा ने थाना प्रभारी महेंद्र सिंह ठाकुर को बदतमीज़ी करते हुए धमकाया।
शिवराज जी,
एक पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री का यह स्तर ?बेहद अशोभनीय और निंदनीय… pic.twitter.com/WTZws1q6mW
— MP Congress (@INCMP) May 3, 2024
Vidisha goes to polls in the third phase of Lok Sabha elections on May 7.
Mr Chouhan, who dominated the politics of Madhya Pradesh for nearly two decades, resigned as the chief minister in December last year, after Mohan Yadav was chosen as his successor, bringing curtains down on an era.
