Indore water contamination: Vijayvargiya uses objectionable word before media, regrets later
Indore (PTI): Madhya Pradesh minister Kailash Vijayvargiya lost his temper while responding to media questions on the contaminated drinking water incident in Indore’s Bhagirathpura area and used an objectionable word on camera.
As the controversy escalated, the MP cabinet minister expressed regret over his remark. The opposition Congress demanded his resignation, accusing BJP leaders in the state of arrogance.
Bhagirathpura falls under Vijayvargiya’s Indore-1 assembly constituency. Health department data shows four deaths due to a diarrhoea outbreak linked to contaminated water in the area, while 212 patients required hospitalisation. Fifty patients have been discharged after recovery.
Vijayvargiya, the state’s urban development and housing minister, initially answered questions calmly while interacting with the media on Wednesday night. However, when asked why several patients from Bhagirathpura had not received refunds for bills paid to private hospitals and why proper drinking water arrangements had not been made for residents, he suddenly lost his temper.
The senior BJP leader said, “Leave it, don’t ask free (unnecessary) questions.”
An argument then broke out between Vijayvargiya and a journalist who had raised the question, following which the minister used an objectionable word.
After the video of the interaction went viral on social media, Vijayvargiya issued a statement expressing regret.
“My team and I have been working continuously in the affected area for the past two days without sleep to improve the situation. My people are suffering due to contaminated water, and some have lost their lives.
“In this state of deep grief, my words came out wrong on a media question. I express my regret for this. However, I will not rest until my people are completely safe and healthy,” he said.
Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee president Jitu Patwari shared the video on social media, claiming that “deaths due to toxic water in Indore had risen from eight to 10”.
He accused BJP leaders of arrogance and demanded that Chief Minister Mohan Yadav seek Vijayvargiya’s resignation on moral grounds.
CM Yadav on Wednesday described the diarrhoea outbreak caused by contaminated drinking water in the Bhagirthpura area as an "emergency-like situation" and assured strict action against those responsible. He said 212 patients were hospitalised, of whom 50 had been discharged after recovery.
Never expected any Indian Journalist to give it back to someone as powerful as Kailash Vijayvargiya, Amit Shah's man.
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) December 31, 2025
Seeing this video of an Indian Journalist questioning and holding power accountable brings hope. @Anurag_Dwary ✊ pic.twitter.com/q8ZrvuRVjf
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Osman Hadi murder: Prime accused denies role, claims he was in Dubai
Dubai: The murder case of Bangladeshi student leader Sharif Osman Hadi has taken a new turn after the prime accused, Faisal Karim Masud, publicly denied any involvement in the killing, asserting that he was in Dubai at the time, contradicting earlier claims by Bangladesh police that he had fled to India.
In a video message that has gone viral on social media, the authenticity of which has not been independently verified, Masud rejected the allegations against him and described the case as a fabricated conspiracy. He claimed that a radical political group was responsible for the attack on Hadi and said he had been falsely implicated.
“I am Faisal Karim Masud. I want to state clearly that I am not involved in the murder of Hadi in any way. This case is completely false and based on a fabricated conspiracy,” Masud said in the video. He added that he was forced to leave Bangladesh and travel to Dubai due to the allegations, despite holding a valid five-year multiple-entry visa for the UAE.
Masud acknowledged that he had visited Hadi’s office shortly before the shooting but maintained that their relationship was purely professional. Describing himself as a businessman who owns an IT firm and a former employee of the Ministry of Finance, Masud said he had approached Hadi regarding a job opportunity. According to him, Hadi sought an advance payment of 500,000 taka for arranging the job and also requested donations for various programmes, which he said he provided.
The accused further alleged that his family members were being harassed and falsely implicated in the case. “They have no involvement whatsoever. This kind of inhumane treatment of my family is unjust and unacceptable, and I strongly protest against it,” he said.
Masud also accused Jamaat-linked elements of orchestrating Hadi’s killing, claiming the student leader was targeted by “Jamaati elements” and that he and his younger brother were deliberately framed. A photograph purportedly showing Masud’s UAE visa has also circulated widely online.
Earlier, Bangladesh police had stated that Masud and another accused, Alamgir Sheikh, fled the country after the killing and entered India through the Meghalaya border. Media reports in Bangladesh claimed the two crossed over via the Haluaghat border in Mymensingh district and were currently in India. India, however, has firmly denied any connection between the accused and its territory, calling the allegations a false narrative being pushed by extremist elements.
Sharif Osman Hadi, a key figure in Bangladesh’s student uprising last year, was shot in the head by masked gunmen in Dhaka on December 12 and succumbed to his injuries six days later at a hospital in Singapore. He had emerged as a prominent leader during the student-led protests that culminated in the end of Sheikh Hasina’s rule.
