Ex-BJP MLA held for threatening Kamal Nath

A former BJP MLA’s open threat to shed Chief Minister Kamal Nath’s blood on streets rocked the state Assembly with ruling party members vociferously demanding his immediate arrest.

Surendranath Singh (Ex-BJP MLA) had lost the last Bhopal Assembly election to Congress.

Later, the Bhopal police arrested the ex-MLA and produced him in a local court. An unrepentant Surendranath Singh told media persons in the court premises that he would rather prefer being sent to jail than tender an apology for what he said about the chief minister.

Surendranath, who is known as gumthi (small kiosks put up by petty vendors on roads) mafia, had led a demonstration of small traders in the city to protest against anti-encroachment drive of the BJP-ruled Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) for removal of illegal kiosks on Thursday.

Addressing the crowd, he threatened the administration that if the drive was not stopped, blood will be shed on the streets and that blood will be of Kamal Nath.

The incident is reminiscent of the last month’s hooliganism in Indore where senior BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya’s son and MLA Akash Vijayvargiya had thrashed a municipal corporation officer with a cricket bat. In that incident too, the provocation for the MLA’s assault was drive against encroachments.

Despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s unambiguous directive to expel the errant MLA and his supporters, the BJP has not shown any demonstrable action against them.

However, unlike the Indore incident, the BJP leadership was quick to distance itself from ‘uncivilised language’ of its former MLA from Bhopal.

State BJP president Rakesh Singh said that whatever the provocation, such foul language of a party leader will not be tolerated.

A defiant Surendranath has dared the party leadership to take action against him. “I have not done anything wrong. I will not apologise and I am ready to go to jail”, he told media persons.

The police have registered two FIRs against Surendranath in two police stations. The first is for threatening to kill BMC’s anti-encroachment drive officer Gauhar Khan. The action followed a viral video that showed the BJP leader threatening the municipal officer that if anti-encroachment drive was not stopped, he would beat the BMC officers after stripping them naked. He also threatened to set the BMC vehicles on fire.

In the second FIR, the former MLAs along with 10 others have been booked for defying the collector’s order and entering in the region prohibited for entry due to ongoing state Assembly session.

Neither FIR, however, has mentioned the BJP leader’s abusive language directed against the chief minister.