BHOPAL: An ITBP jawan's social media post in which he has threatened to emulate soldier-turned- outlaw Paan Singh Tomar over alleged inaction by police against those who allegedly assaulted his family members has prompted Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath to intervene.
Nath has directed officials to probe the matter and provide security to family members of the jawan, Amit Singh, a resident of Mundi village in Khandwa district.
In his FB post, Singh said he would not hesitate to pick up a gun like Paan Singh Tomar--a soldier cum athlete who later turned an outlaw in Chambal region--if those responsible for assaulting his family members are not punished.
"Madhya Pradesh government should give justice to my family and brother...don't force me to become a new Paan Singh Tomar...I won't need a training to fire a gun," Singh wrote in Hindi.
The government swung into action after the post went viral.
"Taking cognisance of Singh's Facebook post, chief minister Kamal Nath has directed an impartial investigation into the case of physical altercation between the private security personnel (hired by MP Tourism) and the ITBP jawan's family members at Hanumantiya Dam (a tourist spot) in Khandwa district on August 16," Nath's media coordinator Narendra Saluja said on Sunday.
Khandwa superintendent of police Shivdayal Singh said the matter would be re-investigated as per the directives of the chief minister.
"Cases were registered earlier on the complaints of both sides (Singh's family members and security guards). Further action would be taken if new facts emerge during probe," he said.
According to Atul Singh, brother of Amit Singh, the incident occurred on August 16 when his family members had gone to Hanuwantiya Island in Khandwa district on a picnic.
He claimed that an argument broke out between the private security guards and his family members as they were not allowed to carry milk bottles and biscuits for babies at a restaurant, which turned physical.
He claimed the guards, as well as staff at other facilities at Hanuwantiya, attacked him and other family members with bricks and sticks.
Atul, who was injured in one of his eyes, is being treated in Indore.
He said his another brother Vipul Singh's suffered a fracture in his leg.
Tomar was a seven-time national steeplechase champion in the 1950s and 1960s, who represented India at the 1958 Asian Games.
After a premature retirement from the Army, Tomar returned to his native village.
He later gained notoriety as a Chambal Valley rebel when he resorted to violence after a land feud there.
He was shot dead in 1981.