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Hindutva nationalist leader abuses, hits students at Jantar Mantar protest on cam; video goes viral
Sharing the video, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav called for immediate arrest of the accused.
Day after the Cockroach Janta Party called off it protest at Jantar Mantar, a video emerged on social media showing a man confronting and hitting students who reportedly attended the protest.
The man in the video, as shared by several politicians including Samajwadi Party MP Akhilesh Yadav and Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, has been identified as Satyam Pandit, a Hindutva nationalist reportedly based in Ghaziabad.
In the video, now in wide circulation on social media, the man is seen dressed in a white kurta and a saffron scarf, questioning two students. He is heard asking them who they are supporting and what are their names.
Also read: 'Dharmendra Pradhan offered to resign on Day 1 of protests’: BJP leader makes bombshell claim
When one of the students reply that they're Hindu, the man asks them why are they supporting “this party (seemingly Cockroach Janta Party)” which, according to him, are raising “anti-national students”.
The man is also heard verbally abusing the students before proceeding to grab the collar of one of them and hitting him, even as he tries to defend himself. He then forces the student to look into the camera and apologise before threatening to hit him if he is seen near the protest site again.
“Dikhega aj ke baad? Bhot maarunga (Will you be seen after this? I'll beat you up),” the man is heard saying in the video riddled with verbal abuses.
It is not known whether the students in the video are minor or adults and when was the video shot. HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the clip.
Also read: 'She may not follow her father…': Assam minister's daughter joins NEET protest; CM Himanta reacts
How politicians reacted
Sharing the video, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav called for immediate arrest of the accused and said that BJP members “aren't even loyal to their own promises”.
“Let everyone witness the BJP and their allies' misconduct, vile words, and violence. Behold their audacity: mere hours have passed since promises were made to the youth, and these BJP members are repeating their historical betrayals by deceiving once again. These so-called cultured BJP leaders are brazenly tearing apart the assurances given by their top leadership and even filming videos of it. Is this too happening because of a clash between the double engines?" Yadav wrote on X.
“BJP: The Antithesis of Trust!” he added.
TMC MP Mahua Moitra also shared the video and wrote, “This foul rabid animal named Satyam Pandit needs to be picked up by @DelhiPolice asap & booked. Else we file an FIR.”
Dharmendra Pradhan resigns after student protests
Cockroach Janta Party, founded and led by Abhijeet Dipke, sat on a protest for 36 days at Jantar Mantar demanding the resignation of education minister Dharmendra Pradhan over NEET-UG paper leak. Protests were conducted across the country echoing the demand.
On Saturday, the government gave into student's protests and Pradhan resigned from his post. Pralhad Joshi, consumer affairs minister, was given additional charge of the education ministry after Pradhan's resignation.
The CJP called off its protest on Saturday after they said that their demands have been met.
