Bhadohi SP MLA shifted to Naini jail

MLA Zahid Jamal Beg, wanted in a case of abetment to the suicide of a 17-year-old girl, surrendered in a court in Bhadohi on Thursday. Beg and his wife, Seema Beg were wanted in connection with the abetment of the girl’s suicide and violating labour laws. However, his wife remains on the run.

VARANASI: A day after surrendering before a court in Bhadohi in a case of abetting the suicide of his maid and in another case of violation of the Labour Act, SP MLA from Bhadohi Zahid Beg on Friday was shifted to Naini jail, whereas his son was shifted to Varanasi jail from Bhadohi jail, officials said. Both were shifted amid tight security arrangements, said a police official.

SP MLA from Bhadohi Zahid Beg on Friday was shifted to Naini jail, whereas his son was shifted to Varanasi jail from Bhadohi jail, officials said (Pic for representation)

MLA Zahid Jamal Beg, wanted in a case of abetment to the suicide of a 17-year-old girl, surrendered in a court in Bhadohi on Thursday. Beg and his wife, Seema Beg were wanted in connection with the abetment of the girl’s suicide and violating labour laws. However, his wife remains on the run.

As the MLA reached the court , police attempted to arrest him, which led to a skirmish between the MLA and the policemen. However, the MLA’s lawyer, Tejbahadur Yadav, stated that the MLA surrendered before chief judicial magistrate Sabiha Khatoon, who sent him to 14 days’ judicial custody.

Beg’s lawyer levelled serious allegations against the police administration, claiming that the cops created a ruckus during the surrender at the court gate despite the MLA having undergone bypass surgery. “It was not fair to do this after he reached the court campus,” he said, adding that he would file a complaint with the Bar Council of India, the Human Rights Commission, the Chief Justice of India and the chief justice of the high court.

The minor’s body was found on the top floor of MLA’s house in Malikana town, under Bhadohi police station limits, on September 9. Police said the girl was employed as a domestic help in the MLA’s house and had been living there for several years.

Police said that their investigation revealed that Zahid Beg and his wife Seema Beg forced the 17-year-old girl to work against her will. The girl, fed up with her circumstances, allegedly committed suicide on the night of September 8, they added.

A case had already been registered against the MLA and his wife under Section 108 of the BNS, and further legal proceedings were underway.

During the investigation, it came to light that another minor girl had been working as a domestic help at the MLA’s residence for the past two years. On the instructions of district magistrate Vishal Singh, a joint team of police and district administration officials rescued her on September 10 and sent her to the Government Children’s Home (Girls) in Prayagraj, police added.

According to police, the recused girl said that the 17-year-old had told her days before her death that she wanted to run away because she was tired of household work and fed up with her circumstances. Later, the MLA’s son Zaim’s involvement in her death came to light and he was arrested near Makdumpur on Jaunpur-Bhadohi road, police added.