‘Bulldozer running...’: MP chief minister warns miscreants of house demolition

Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that the houses of rape accused have been razed in Sheopur and Shahdol to teach them a lesson.

BHOPAL: Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday came heavily on the miscreants in the state warning them of demolishing their houses.

He said that those who exploit the poor, keep a bad eye on sisters and daughters and misbehave with them should understand that their houses will be converted into a field.

The chief minister made the statement on a day the house of a gang rape accused was demolished in the old Basti area in Shahdol citing lack of permission from the municipality for its construction. The estimated cost of the house, owned by Shaadab Usmani, the main accused in a gang rape case reported on March 16, was around ₹40 lakh.

Shahdol superintendent of police, Awadesh Goswami said, “It has been told that the house of the accused was built without permission from the municipality. Along with this, the building tax was also not paid to the municipality for a long time.”

“After completing the investigation process related to house construction, this action (demolition) was taken on Tuesday,” said Amit Tiwari, chief municipality officer, Shahdol.

Two days ago, the house of another gang-rape accused was demolished in Sheopur under the chief minister’s direction. Later, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Bhopal, Rameshwar Sharma, put up hoardings with the title “Bete ki Suraksha mein jo banega roda, Mama ka bulldozer banega hathoda”.

Chief minister Chouhan visited Chandpura village in Raisen district on Tuesday to meet the affected people of a communal clash that broke out on Friday night. During the visit, he also met the relatives of Raju Adiwasi, who was killed in the clash.

During his interaction, the chief minister said, “I am saying this clearly today that Bulldozer is running in Seoni, Sheopur and Jaora town of Ratlam district to end mafias. The houses of rape accused have been razed in Sheopur and Shahdol to teach them a lesson.”

The chief minister further said, “There was a time when I was the chief minister and there was a terror of dacoits. But now there is not a single dacoit left in MP and that’s why I say that your (mafias and rape accused) existence on the soil of Madhya Pradesh will end. No one needs to be afraid. This is MP.”

However, Congress leaders attacked the BJP-led state government accusing it of running a parallel court to allegedly copy Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath. “The Chief Minister and BJP MLAs are copying UP chief minister but they shouldn’t run the parallel court. BJP state government is punishing the people before the court’s decision. This is misuse of power,” said PC Sharma, Congress MLA.