RAIPUR: A circuit house staff member lodged a police complaint against Chhattisgarh cabinet minister Kedar Kashyap, accusing him of physical and verbal abuse in Jagdalpur (Bastar) for not opening the lock of rooms for the BJP workers.
“The minister got his hands on my collar, dragged me into a room, removed his shoes, and thrashed. He used abusive words against my mother and sister. For years, I have been carrying my duty with full dedication despite being paralysed on the right side”, said Khitendra Pandey, a daily wage employee, posted in the government guest hose as a chef for years.
Kashyap is the forest and transport minister in the Vishnu Deo Sai cabinet.
In his written complaint, Pandey also alleged that ministers, leaders and workers of the ruling party often misbehaved with the circuit house staffs deployed to carry out official works.
Though there was no eye-witness of the incident of allegedly assaulting the staffer in a closed room, another employee is said to have claimed the minister allegedly ill-treated Pandey.
Jagdalpur district police chief Shalabh Sinha confirmed that a complaint against the minister has been received. “We are examining it, verifying the facts and based on it further action will be taken”, he told TNIE.
Kashyap countered the accusation, calling it ‘propaganda’ against him. “The staffer was just scolded and told to carry out his assigned duties properly. Insult to workers is unacceptable to me under any circumstances. No such incident (of assault) has taken place”, the minister defended himself.
The alleged incident however triggered a political row with the Congress now demanding dismissal of Kashyap. The opposition declared to hold demonstrations against the minister and burn his effigy in every district of the state.
The BJP minister termed the Congress move as 'politically motivated'.
Former Chhattisgarh chief minister, Bhupesh Baghel, sought the resignation of Kashyap as the Congress general secretary and tagged Prime Minister Narendra Modi on X-post, saying: “If you respect all mothers in the country then show the courage to dismiss the ‘galibaaj’ minister”.
“Does the verbal abuse if said by a BJP minister, is considered a Shlok (Sanskrit verse used in Hindu scriptures)”? Baghel asked.
“Kashyapji, after reaching the circuit house, saw the party workers sitting outside in the lobby and became infuriated. The staffer had earlier refused to open any room for the party workers till the minister arrived. The minister got upset and said that those who do not give due regard to the party workers will face consequences”, said Kirti Padhi, a BJP supporter, who was present at the circuit house.