Bhopal: Family members of late Congress leader Devendra Chaurasia sat on a hunger strike in Damoh on Monday demanding immediate arrest of Govind Singh, husband of BSP MLA Rambai Singh. Govind is an accused in the murder of Chaurasia on March 15 and has been on the run for a while.
A group allegedly led by Govind had attacked Chaurasia, who had recently defected to the Congress from the BSP, and his son Somesh. While Chaurasia died in the assault, his son was treated for grievous injuries.
Recently, a controversy had erupted after Singh was seen in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly with his lawmaker wife with the BJP hitting out at the ruling Congress for going soft on BSP MLA’s husband.
Soon after, Govind released a video and urged the media to do its research before reporting on such sensitive issues. In the video, Singh sought a CBI probe into Chaurasia’s murder and said he was ready to be hanged if found guilty and promised that his wife would resign if his involvement was proved. He even claimed that Chaurasia’s brothers were behind his death and had falsely framed him in the case.
However, in a video posted on Facebook, Somesh said, “The MP government instead of sending the man responsible for my father’s death and injuring me, behind bars, is trying to shield him.”
“I am a witness to the assault by Govind Singh and his family members on me and my father on March 15 at Hatta town in Damoh,” he said, adding that the attack took place days after his father quit the BSP to join the grand old party. Govind was earlier named in Congress leader Rajendra Pathak’s murder in 1998 and is out on bail.
While Home Minister Bala Bachchan refused to comment on the issue, Leader of Opposition Gopal Bhargav said, “How can a murder accused roam freely in the Assembly corridors at a time when the media’s movement has been restricted on the premises?” He, however, wasn’t clear whether his party would raise the issue in the ongoing Budget session.
The Kamal Nath-led Congress government with 114 seats is heavily dependent on the support of four independents, lone Samajwadi party MLA and two BSP MLAs, including Rambai Singh, who represents the Patharia seat in Damoh and had defeated former finance minister Jayant Malaiya in 2018.
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