NEW DELHI/SHIMLA: Shimla police registered an FIR against rural development and Himachal Pradesh minister Anirudh Singh Rana late Monday night for allegedly assaulting two NHAI engineers officials who were visiting the site of a collapsed five-storey building.
The FIR was registered on the basis of NHAI manager Achal Jindal's complaint at Dhali police station under five sections of BNS dealing with assaulting a public servant, voluntarily causing hurt, intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace, wrongful restraint and common intention. Jindal in his complaint, which TOI reported first on Tuesday, had alleged that he and an assistant engineer were assaulted in presence of local SDM and others, and had to be hospitalised.
The "brutal assault" was condemned by Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari “It’s deeply disturbing that such an assault occurred in the presence of SDM concerned and police officials...Failure of the local administration to intervene and protect NHAI officers or provide immediate medical assistance to them further compound the gravity of this incident,” Gadkari wrote to HP CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.
Seeking strong action against all perpetrators, Gadkari has sought “fixing responsibility of the administrative and police officials concerned for their inaction”. He cautioned that “continued inaction” may prompt the ministry to “reassess ongoing and future projects”.
“I spoke with Union minister Nitin Gadkari this morning. I assured him that we will take action as per law." Sukhu later told reporters.
NHAI Engineers’ Association were, however, unhappy with state govt's response and said that the FIR “invokes weak sections” of BNS.
Jindal in his complaint had said that Shimla SDM (rural) Manjeet Sharma had on Monday called him and NHAI site engineer Yogesh to a site in Bhattakufer, around 11 km from Shimla, where the five-storey building had collapsed and four-laning work of the national highway is underway. As minister Rana was also on site, Jindal briefed him on the incident and told him that the collapsed building was 30 metres from the highway’s ‘right of way’ (ROW), and any damage occurring outside ROW falls under state govt’s jurisdiction.
He alleged that the minister then abused him in the presence of the SDM and local residents, called the two NHAI officials to a nearby room and started hitting Jindal on the head with a water pitcher. When the site engineer tried to save him, he too was allegedly beaten. Since the people present there, including the SDM, allegedly did not help in any way, the NHAI officials ran away from the spot and drove to Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC), Shimla, for treatment.
The FIR was registered on the basis of NHAI manager Achal Jindal's complaint at Dhali police station under five sections of BNS dealing with assaulting a public servant, voluntarily causing hurt, intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace, wrongful restraint and common intention. Jindal in his complaint, which TOI reported first on Tuesday, had alleged that he and an assistant engineer were assaulted in presence of local SDM and others, and had to be hospitalised.
The "brutal assault" was condemned by Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari “It’s deeply disturbing that such an assault occurred in the presence of SDM concerned and police officials...Failure of the local administration to intervene and protect NHAI officers or provide immediate medical assistance to them further compound the gravity of this incident,” Gadkari wrote to HP CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.
Seeking strong action against all perpetrators, Gadkari has sought “fixing responsibility of the administrative and police officials concerned for their inaction”. He cautioned that “continued inaction” may prompt the ministry to “reassess ongoing and future projects”.
“I spoke with Union minister Nitin Gadkari this morning. I assured him that we will take action as per law." Sukhu later told reporters.
NHAI Engineers’ Association were, however, unhappy with state govt's response and said that the FIR “invokes weak sections” of BNS.
Jindal in his complaint had said that Shimla SDM (rural) Manjeet Sharma had on Monday called him and NHAI site engineer Yogesh to a site in Bhattakufer, around 11 km from Shimla, where the five-storey building had collapsed and four-laning work of the national highway is underway. As minister Rana was also on site, Jindal briefed him on the incident and told him that the collapsed building was 30 metres from the highway’s ‘right of way’ (ROW), and any damage occurring outside ROW falls under state govt’s jurisdiction.
He alleged that the minister then abused him in the presence of the SDM and local residents, called the two NHAI officials to a nearby room and started hitting Jindal on the head with a water pitcher. When the site engineer tried to save him, he too was allegedly beaten. Since the people present there, including the SDM, allegedly did not help in any way, the NHAI officials ran away from the spot and drove to Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC), Shimla, for treatment.
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