In a shocking incident in Singrauli district, Madhya Pradesh, a 34-year-old man, Surya Kumar Khairwar, was injured after an altercation with the 40-year-old son of BJP MLA Ram Lallu Vaishya. The incident took place near Budhi Mai Mata temple, about 25 km from the district headquarters, on Thursday around 6 pm.
According to police reports, the accused, Vivekanand Vaishya, was driving his car when he got into an argument with a group of people over a narrow road. Khairwar, belonging to a tribal community, joined the group and engaged in a heated exchange with Vaishya. In a fit of rage, the politician's son allegedly fired at Khairwar, injuring him in the right wrist.
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Police have registered a case against Vivekanand Vaishya under section 307 (attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections 25 (possessing or carrying any prohibited arms) and 27 (use of arms, ammunition) of the Arms Act. Notably, Vaishya is no stranger to the law as he had previously roughed up a forest guard and opened fire last year in another incident.
Interestingly, questions have arisen as to why the accused was not booked under the stringent Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, given that the victim was from a tribal community. Police clarified that if Khairwar submits his caste certificate, appropriate charges under the SC/ST Act could be invoked against Vaishya.
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It's worth noting that Vaishya had earlier surrendered in a local court in February this year after bashing up forest guard Sanjeev Shukla and firing at him on a previous occasion. He had spent around 45 days in government hospitals on medical grounds during his judicial custody before being granted bail from the high court.
