Heckled minister pushes woman to make his way, video goes viral
Minister of state for higher education and dairy development Dhan Singh Rawat was heckled by villagers during a protest in his constituency over a road construction
Minister of state for higher education and dairy development Dhan Singh Rawat was heckled by villagers during a protest in his constituency over a road construction.
In a two-minute video, which was circulated on Whatsapp, the minister is seen confronting a crowd as he is being heckled.
The incident happened on Sunday when Dhan Singh was touring his constituency Srinagar Garhwal. In the video, some villagers are heard shouting “road nahi banane denge (will not let the construction of road)”. Amid all this, villagers are seen asking some questions to the minister. The minister is seen leaving the spot in a huff, while pushing a woman, who tries to block his way. The minister was then escorted by his supporters to a safe location.
HT could not independently verify the content of the video.
When asked, Dhan Singh denied that he pushed the woman intentionally. He said those opposing the road (in the video) are associated with the Congress. “Those opposing the road want favours in the construction works,” he said.
“I sanctioned a road for a village, which is being opposed by another neighbouring village, as the latter wants a share in the MNREGA works, which is not possible as per rules,” minister told HT.
The minister said that half of the road is to be constructed by MNREGA funds, while the rest of the portion is to be built by the district plan. “The MNREGA works cannot be transferred to another village and this is the bone of contention,” he said, adding that he was happy that video was going viral. “At least people will know that this government is pro-development,” he added.
The first time legislature and junior minister in the Trivendra Singh Rawat government, Dhan Singh has been in the news for odd reasons. In his higher education ministry, he made dress code compulsory for the government college professors. He also ordered students to sing Vande Matram before leaving the college.