Hardik Patel slapped during public rally in Gujarat
Ahmedabad: Congress leader Hardik Patel was slapped by a man Friday when he was addressing a poll rally in a village in Surendranagar district of Gujarat, said police.
An angry Patel blamed the BJP for the incident and said this was an attempt to kill him.
However, ruling party leaders said they have nothing to do with the incident, which they termed as a staged drama by the Congress to gain sympathy ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
The man, identified as Tarun Gajjar, a resident of Kadi town of Mehsana district, suffered injuries after he was thrashed by Congress workers, Patel supporters and others at the rally venue, around 130km from here.
He is currently undergoing treatment as he was badly thrashed by people at the rally, said police inspector of Wadhwan, H R Jethi.
Gajjar said he is not associated with any political party and slapped the Patidar quota leader due to personal reasons.
As soon as Hardik Patel started his speech at Baldana village under Wadhwan taluka, Gajjar suddenly came on the stage and slapped him.
The incident was captured in cameras of news channels covering the event in the district, around 130km from here. Congress candidate for the Surendranagar Lok Sabha seat, Soma Patel, was present on the dais when Patel was slapped.
Gajjar appeared angry and was seen saying something to Patel after slapping him. Gajjar was overpowered by Congress workers, Hardik Patel supporters and others present at the rally, who also beat him up.
The police intervened and freed Gajjar and took him to a safer place in their vehicle, said Jethi.
In a video of the incident, Gajjar can be seen being mercilessly thrashed by both women and men, who also tore his cloths, before policemen intervened and took him away.
Following the incident, Patel lodged a complaint with the police.
"Since Gajjar was brutally thrashed by people, he was referred to a hospital in Limbdi town. It is still unclear why he slapped Hardik.
"The Congress leader claimed he does not know Gajjar. We have taken Hardik's written complaint and started our investigation, but not yet filed an FIR," said Jethi, adding the police were yet to question the attacker.
Talking to the media, Patel claimed the BJP had sent Gajjar to attack him.
"The BJP is trying to harm me. Many people were hired by the BJP to attack me. I do not know why that person did this.
"Even I requested the locals, who were beating him, to let him go and forgive him. I am sure that he was BJP's man. This was an attempt to kill me. I could have been killed if he was carrying a gun today," said Patel.
He said Congress president Rahul Gandhi had called him to enquire about his well-being.
BJP leader from the Saurashtra region, Raju Dhruv, refuted Patel's claim that Gajjar was sent by the ruling party to attack him.
"The BJP has nothing to do with this incident. We do not believe in such low-level politics. The truth is that people have now realised that Hardik had only used the Patidar community to satisfy his political ambitions.
"This is a staged drama by the Congress to gain sympathy," said Dhruv.
Talking to the media from his hospital bed, Gajjar said he has been planning to attack Patel since the last three -and-a-half years due to personal reasons.
"I am not associated with any political party. I am angry with Hardik since the last three-and-a-half years because my wife and my child had suffered because of him (during the quota agitation of August 2015).
"I was planning to attack him since then," said Gajjar, who is in his mid 30s.
Gajjar said he had tried to attack the 25-year-old politician, who joined the Congress last month, in the past too.
"I first planned to attack Hardik during his rally in Kalol on April 13, but he did not came there. Then, I had planned to attack him at a rally in Balisana on April 17.
"But, I failed at that time. Finally, I got success today. I am not against the Patidar community. I am against Hardik," said Gajjar.
#WATCH Congress leader Hardik Patel slapped during a rally in Surendranagar,Gujarat pic.twitter.com/VqhJVJ7Xc4
— ANI (@ANI) April 19, 2019
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BCI urges CJI to take action against Andhra HC judge for sending young lawyer to 24-hour custody
New Delhi (PTI): The Bar Council of India on Wednesday sought the urgent intervention of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant following a "deeply disturbing" incident where a judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court reportedly sent a young advocate to
24-hour judicial custody over a procedural lapse.
The Bar Council of India (BCI) Chairperson and senior advocate Manan Kumar Mishra, in a formal representation, termed the conduct of Justice Tarlada Rajasekhar Rao "grossly inappropriate" and "damaging to the confidence of the Bar".
“I most respectfully request your Lordship to kindly take immediate institutional cognizance of the matter and call for the video recording of the proceedings, the order passed, and the surrounding circumstances.
“I further request that appropriate administrative action may kindly be considered, including withdrawal of judicial work from the learned Judge pending review, his immediate transfer to some far off High Court, and his nomination for appropriate judicial training/orientation on court management, judicial temperament, Bar-Bench relations, and proportional exercise of contempt/judicial authority,” Mishra wrote.
This representation is made to preserve the “dignity, moral authority and public confidence of the judiciary”, he said, adding, “Judges command the highest respect not by fear, but by fairness, patience, restraint and constitutional humility”.
The communication urged the CJI to intervene at the earliest to ensure that the faith of Bar, particularly young advocates, in the protective and corrective role of the judiciary is restored.
The controversy stems from proceedings on May 5.
According to the BCI, a video circulating online shows Justice Rao rebuking a young advocate who was unable to produce a specific order copy during a hearing.
The letter said that despite the advocate "repeatedly seeking pardon and mercy" and claiming he was in physical pain, the judge remained "unmoved".
The judge allegedly told the lawyer, "now you will learn," and mocked his experience before directing the Registrar and police personnel to take him into custody for 24 hours.
The BCI chairperson said that the judge’s actions lacked proportionality and fairness.
"The dignity of the court is not enhanced when a lawyer is made to beg for grace in open court and is still sent to custody for a procedural lapse," the letter said.
"A young lawyer... is an officer of the Court, still learning, still growing, and entitled to correction without humiliation," it added.
The bar body said that such actions create a "chilling effect" on the legal fraternity, particularly among junior members, and undermine the mutual respect required between the Bench and the Bar.
