Madhya Pradesh: SDM, tehsildar among 4 booked over assault on 2 men on road

Umaria (Madhya Pradesh): Police have registered a case against a Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) along with a tehsildar and two others after a video purportedly showed two men being beaten up in his presence, apparently for overtaking his vehicle in Madhya Pradesh's Umaria district.

The FIR has named SDM Amit Singh, tehsildar Vinod Kumar, SDM's driver Narendra Das Panika and Sandeep Singh, an assistant to tehsildar, police said.

Civil Line police post in-charge Amar Singh said that information was received on Monday evening through head constable Shishir Tripathi about a fight between three vehicle owners.

As per the information, two youths were beaten up and they were found in a critical condition, from where they were rushed to a hospital, he said. After recording the statements of the injured persons, a case was registered, he said.

The accused were booked under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 294 (obscene act in public place), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 341 (wrongful restraint) and 34 (common intention), he added.

One of the victims, Prakash Dahiya, who sustained injuries on his head and other parts of the body, claimed that people sitting in the vehicle with 'SDM' written on it got down and thrashed him and another car occupant Shivam Yadav, both residents of Bharola village, for crossing the vehicle.

They also broke the window panes of his car, Dahiya alleged.

In the complaint, Dahiya stated that he later came to know that the persons travelling in the vehicle were SDM and tehsildar.

The FIR quoted complainant Dahiya as saying that Shivam was driving the car and didn't take the vehicle on the side of the road while crossing, following which the SDM's vehicle followed their car and intercepted it.

Narendradas Panika and Sandeep Singh beat them with sticks, the complaint alleged.

SDM Amit Singh, posted at Bandhavgarh, however, gave a different version of the incident and denied that the duo was assaulted under his watch. He alleged that one of the victims was driving his car carelessly and was about to hit his official vehicle.

On Monday, SDM Singh had said he was visiting areas under his jurisdiction in his vehicle as various programmes were organised on the occasion of the Ram Lalla idol consecration in Ayodhya.

He said the car in which the victims were sitting was being driven at a fast speed and his driver somehow avoided a collision.

Singh said he got down from his vehicle after seeing the attack on the duo and tried to calm the situation.

The government official, however, denied people travelling in his vehicle were involved in the attack.

The police will take legal steps against those involved in the assault, Singh said.

In the video, the men, surrounded by the SDM and others, could be seen being beaten up with sticks by a group of people.

PTI could not independently verify the authenticity of the video.