DEHRADUN: Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Mussourie Ganesh Joshi who is accused of assaulting and severely injuring a horse that belonged to the Dehradun Police, visited the injured animal here on Thursday and said that the horse needs better treatment and must be send to the national capital in that regard.
Speaking to ANI after meeting ‘Shaktimaan’, Joshi said that he and his delegation came to meet the horse out of humanity and reiterated that he was not guilty of hurting the animal.
“The horse has multiple fractures and he will take time to heal. He surely needs better doctors and I have recommended that he be sent to New Delhi for better quality of treatment.
Senior Superintendent of Police, Dehradun Sadanand Daate briefed ANI regarding the current status of the horse and said that an expert team will be visiting the animal soon.
“At present the horse is unable to stand on its own. Further course of action will be initiated if required. Policemen are on duty with him around the clock and we are diligently collecting more evidences in the matter,” he added.
Joshi had earlier asserted that he is ready to face any penalty if he was found guilty for assaulting Shaktimaan.
"It is unfortunate. A sensitive issue like this in which an animal was hurt. This is wrong. The video is clubbed and fabricated. The news channel is showing all this fake video for TRP. I am innocent and I am ready to face any penalty if I am found guilty," Joshi told ANI here.
The BJP MLA refuted all allegations and labelled the whole episode as a political conspiracy against him.
"Police should have identified the person because of whom the horse fell, a proper probe should have had taken place. Those were two different incidents which have been clubbed and fabricated. I am very popular in my region, so my image is being maligned by these false allegations. If they (Congress) have to fight me, then fight with me politically not by using an injured animal," he added.
Meanwhile, People for Animal (PFA), an organisation headed by Union Minister and BJP leader Maneka Sanjay Gandhi has demanded the expulsion of Joshi.
Reacting to the video showing Joshi hitting the horse, PFA demanded that action be taken against him, and said he had brought a bad name to the party. Gandhi said she planned to request the higher-ups in the party to take action against him.