UP: Supporters of BJP legislators clash during blanket distribution event in Sitapur district
There was reportedly a dispute over who would take credit for organising the event.
Two Bharatiya Janata Party legislators and their supporters clashed in Uttar Pradesh’s Sitapur district on Saturday during an event to distribute blankets among the poor, the Hindustan Times reported.
Supporters of BJP MP Rekha Verma and MLA Shashank Trivedi clashed after the two argued over mismanagement of the event. There was also reportedly a dispute over who would take credit for organising the event.
The brawl between the supporters of the two legislators broke out in the presence of the police and district officials, a video of the incident showed. At one point, Verma slapped a man in khaki clothes and took off her footwear, waving it in the air. An unidentified number of people had been injured, PTI reported.
Sub-Divisional Magistrate Brijpal Singh and Circle Officer Ankit Kumar eventually took both leaders to separate rooms and dispersed their supporters, the Hindustan Times reported. Sitapur District Magistrate Sarika Mohan and Superintendent of Police Anand Kulkarni also arrived at the tehsil office to pacify the two leaders.
BJP district unit chief Ajay Gupta admitted that there was chaos following mismanagement at the blanket distribution event, but denied any problem between Verma and Trivedi.
The cold wave in Chief Minister Adityanath’s state has killed dozens so far, the Hindustan Times reported.