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‘Pistol attack, abuse’: Rivalry between BJP leader, Uttarakhand MLA takes violent turn
Police said the rivalry between former BJP MLA from Laksar Kunwar Pranav Singh Champion and Independent MLA from Khanpur Umesh Kumar is well known.
The rivalry between former BJP MLA from Laksar Kunwar Pranav Singh Champion and Independent MLA from Khanpur Umesh Kumar turned violent on Sunday when the former attacked the latter's office in Uttarakhand's Roorke.
Champion created a ruckus at Kumar's office along with his supporters and also fired several rounds in the air, news agency PTI reported.
A police officer said the accused opened fire in broad daylight at Kumar's office. Visuals from the spot showed two bullet holes in the office's glass window and patches of bullet marks on the wall too.
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Police took suo moto cognizance of the attack after a video of the shooting went viral on social media. HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the video.
The BJP leader said that his action was retaliation for similar attack on his mansion allegedly by Kumar a day earlier at 10.28 pm. Laksar Kunwar Pranav Singh Champion also accused the Khanpur MLA of verbal abuse. “When I reacted, I was picked up. It is an injustice. I will fight against it,” Champion told PTI while being taken in a police van.
In a purported video that has gone viral, Champion was seen in a police van going from Nehru Colony police station in Dehradun.
His wife Devyani Singh alleged that the police did not act on their complaint regarding the attack and claimed that her husband's response was necessary to “save their honour”.
Kumar also reacted to Champion's attack by reaching the latter's office with his supporters and created a ruckus in a similar manner. He was verbally abusing Champion with a pistol in his hand when the police reached the area.
Haridwar SSP Pramendra Singh Doval said both Champion and Kumar have been taken into custody based on complaints filed by both the sides. The rivalry between the two leaders is well-known. They often inveigh against each other on social media platforms, he told PTI.
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Champion has been taken from his residence in Dehradun to the Ranipur police station in Haridwar and Kumar to the Roorkee police station.
Doval also said that a recommendation will be sent to the district magistrate to cancel their licensed pistols and reconsider the security cover provided to them.
