Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday washed the feet of Dashmat Rawat, the man who was seen being urinated on in a viral video from Sidhi, at CM House in Bhopal. The accused, identified as Pravesh Shukla, has been arrested and booked under IPC sections as well as the National Security Act.
The Chief Minister met Rawat at his Bhopal residence on Thursday. Visuals shared by news agency ANI showed the CM sitting on the stool and washing his feet. The CM is also seen garlanding the man, applying a teeka on his forehead, and wrapping a shawl around him.
“I was pained to see that videowas seen urinating on Rawat. I apologise to you. People are like God to me,” Chouhan told Rawat, according to news agency ANI.
The development comes a day after Shukla was charged under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act – a law meant to protect historically oppressed communities, among other IPC sections. Later, the National Security Act was also slapped on him after the video which shows him urinating on the man, was widely shared on social media, and drew widespread outrage.
On Wednesday afternoon, the state administration also razed illegal encroachments at the Sidhi residence of the accused. Senior government official Nilamber Mishra told Hindustan Times that around 400 sqft of the victims’s house which was “constructed illegally” was demolished on Wednesday.
The main opposition Congress has alleged that Shukla is associated with the BJP that is which is also ruling Madhya Pradesh. The BJP has denied the allegation.
The Congress has set up a committee to investigate the urination matter and party leaders are expected to meet the state’s governor next week to raise the issue of alleged suppression of Dalits and tribal people in Madhya Pradesh.