A case was registered against the nephew of Uttar Pradesh Forest Minister Arun Kumar Saxena after he was caught on camera assaulting a Home Guard in Bareilly district.
The video went viral on social media. In the video, the nephew of the state minister, identified as Amit Kumar, is seen thrashing and slapping Omendra Kumar, an officer with the home guards, while one of his acquaintances is seen holding the collar of the government officer. The men were allegedly intoxicated and were carrying beer bottles in their hands.
The minister’s nephew also tore the uniform of the Home Guards platoon commander.
After a huge controversy erupted, the police registered an FIR against “main accused” Amit Kumar.
Amit and his associates were returning from a wedding ceremony in Bareilly when they reportedly met Omendra Kumar at a tea stall and started assaulting the Home Guard personnel over some argument. Omendra Kumar was at a tea stall in Dela Peer area when Amit Kumar and his associates targeted him and hurled abuses. When the Home Guard official objected, the minister's nephew started slapping him.
The Home Guard official said that he had named Amit Kumar in his complaint, but the police had asked him to change it.
The incident reportedly happened on June 4. Initially, the police did not take any action, however, when hundreds of netizens strongly reacted to the video, Senior Superintendent of Police at Bareilly, Rohit Singh, ordered the officials to slap sections related to the assault on a public servant on Amit Kumar.
"We have received the video and it seems genuine. We have also recorded the statement of the victim and a few eyewitnesses. We have slapped sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 504 (intentional insult), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of the Indian Penal Code on accused Amit Kumar and his aides seen in the video," the SSP said.