Bhopal: Two days after a video of BJP Rajya Sabha member Sumitra Balmiki surfaced on social media where she was seen in a furious mood after her belongings were shifted in her absence, a caretaker of the Circuit House in Sagar district was suspended on Tuesday.
Sagar district collector Deepak Arya said the rest house caretaker Harinarayan Kori has been suspended with immediate effect. Meanwhile, the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) and the district hospitality officer Sapna Tripathi were issued show-cause notices. The administration has sought their reply within two days, otherwise disciplinary action will be proposed against them.
In the video, Balmiki can be heard saying, “I have complained to Bhopal. Just because a mantri has come, does it mean you can do this.”
As per the report, Balmiki was in Sagar to participate in the election campaign for BJP candidates contesting the ongoing local body polls and she was staying in a government rest house. Officials told IANS that Balmiki came to Sagar on July 3 to campaign for the BJP’s mayoral candidate for Sagar.
“She was staying in the rest house but in the evening when she returned to the rest house, she found that her belongings had been shifted to another room in her absence. Valmiki alleged that the male staffer touched her innerwear,” said a BJP leader over the phone.
The show-cause notice said that the dignity of the Rajya Sabha MP was not taken care of by the subordinate staff of the district hospitality officer and the prescribed protocol was not followed. It comes under the category of serious misconduct under the Civil Services Conduct Rules, said the notice.
Meanwhile, the Congress attacked the BJP-led state government for insulting a Dalit leader. Congress Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Tankha uploaded this video on his Twitter handle and admonished the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government for showing disrespect to an MP in order to welcome a minister.
“We came to know that she was evicted from the room because it was booked for a minister of the Madhya Pradesh government. However, the minister did not visit the rest house after the controversy. It is an insult to a Dalit woman leader and it showed the real character of the BJP,” said KK Mishra, Madhya Pradesh Congress spokesperson.
(IANS)
