In Madhya Pradesh, miffed BJP ticks off minister over assault case against his son

Following the incident allegedly involving Abhigyan, state BJP chief V D Sharma warned the minister, publicly saying that “no one has the right to resort to hooliganism”.

BJP leaders confirmed that minister Patel was reprimanded by Sharma. “The state chief has told the minister to be careful and cautioned him against getting involved in such incidents in the future,” a party leader said.

According to the police, Abhigyan, who was in a four-wheeler, had a tiff with a journalist riding a two-wheeler at a crossing in the city. He allegedly assaulted the journalist, prompting the owner of a nearby restaurant and his wife to intervene. He allegedly thrashed the duo too.

The incident has provided ammunition to the principal Opposition Congress. State Congress president Jitu Patwari has also slammed the BJP government over the suspension of four policemen for having allegedly manhandled Abhigyan following the incident.

Meanwhile, another BJP leader admitted the incident has hit the party’s image, especially at a time when its campaign is revolving around nepotism and hooliganism. “The minister’s son, who has been taking the lead in his father’s activities for some time now, is under the radar. Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants ministers to work without grabbing attention. The incident will have negative consequences for the father-son duo,” the leader said while recalling how the PM himself had intervened when the video of senior leader Kailash Vijayvargiya’s son assaulting an official with a cricket bat had surfaced in the past.

Patel, a native of Semari Tala in Hoshangabad district, is the minister of state for health in the Mohan Yadav Cabinet and is a first-time MLA from Udaipura, where he defeated Congress’s Devendra Singh Patel by a margin of over 42,000 votes in the 2023 Assembly polls.

The minister had been associated with the RSS since his childhood while his father was an active BJP member. In the 1984 Lok Sabha elections, despite being a minor, Patel worked as a polling agent for the BJP and later rose to the post of district vice-president. He has been actively “working towards eradicating untouchability in society” and has been a recipient of “multiple awards” for taking up the cause during his RSS days.

Patel completed his schooling from Raisen district before graduating in engineering from Vidisha. Known to have a keen interest in writing, he has authored books on the Kathaupanishad and one on Jana Sangh leader Deendayal Upadhyay.