A video of a BJP’s Aligarh city convener, Sangeeta Varshney, allegedly slapping a woman for accompanying a youth from the minority community, has surfaced on social media.
The incident occurred on Tuesday, when the convener saw the woman having tea with the youth, police said.
The youth in question was booked under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 294 (indulging in obscene act at a public place), according to police officials.
No FIR has been lodged against the BJP leader or the locals who allegedly heckled the couple.
In the video, Varshney is heard saying, “Tere ko samajh mein nahi aataa kaun Hindu hai, kaun Musalmaan hai. Pyaar se samajhaa rahee hoon, samajh hee mein nahi aa raha. (Don’t you understand who is a Hindu and who is a Muslim? I am politely making this clear, but even then it seems that you are not getting it).”
When contacted on Friday, Varshney told PTI, “I do not have any problems with Muslims. But, we have a problem with their policy of alluring Hindu girls (Humme Musalmaano se koi shikayat nahi hai, humme unki bargalaane ki neeti se shikayat hai).”
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Rajesh Pandey on Thursday told PTI that the youth was arrested but later released on bail.
The SSP also said that the woman’s father arrived on the spot and took her away after declaring that he and his family did not wish to make an issue.
“Both the girl and her father do not want any action against anyone in the case and they gave this in writing to the police,” Pandey said.
(With agency inputs)