Roughed up BJP MLA stages sit-in, seeks action against MP

Lucknow: A day after he was roughed up by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Sant Kabir Nagar Sharad Tripathi, party MLA Rakesh Singh Baghel on Thursday started a sit-in demanding action against district and police officials, who later lathicharged his supporters.

Mehndaval legislator Baghel was beaten up with shoes in the presence of Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister Ashutosh Tandon at the District Coordination Committee meeting, leaving the ruling party red-faced.

Baghel, who has been summoned to Lucknow by the party state unit president Mahendra Nath Pandey along with Tripathi, told IANS over phone that he will adhere to whatever decision the party high command takes on the matter.

He also confirmed that he will be meeting Pandey to discuss the incident.

He, however, reiterated that there will be no let-up in his demand for action against the "culprits behind the lathicharge".

"The issue was most unfortunate and cannot be easily forgotten but I, as a disciplined foot soldier of the party, will put the facts before the leadership and will accept whatever their decision is," he said.

Angry over the Wednesday's incident, Baghel's supporters had created a ruckus later in the day demanding action against the MP.

The police, however, reacted with a lathicharge.