Guest house employee alleges assault by Chhattisgarh minister, he denies charge
A contractual employee of a government guest house in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar district has accused state Forest Minister Kedar Kashyap of abusing and assaulting him, a charge denied by the BJP leader.
The allegations have triggered a political storm, with the Opposition Congress demanding Kashyap’s removal from the cabinet and registration of an FIR in the matter.
Khitendra Pandey (36), a daily wage cook at Circuit House in Jagdalpur, the district headquarters, submitted a police complaint on Saturday night, seeking an FIR against the minister.
Pandey has submitted a complaint at Kotwali police station and further inquiry is under way, Bastar Superintendent of Police Shalabh Sinha told PTI.
Talking to reporters, Pandey alleged the minister assaulted and abused him on Saturday evening at the Circuit House, claiming he did not unlock guest rooms in the facility.
“I have been working here for the last 20 years. Around 7.30 pm on Saturday, I was cooking snacks for the minister when his Personal Security Officer came up to me and called me. When I went there, minister Kedar Kashyap started abusing me using cuss words,” he alleged.
“The minister held my collar and started thrashing me. The PA (personal assistant of the minister) rescued me and took me away,” Pandey claimed.
He alleged the minister thrashed him claiming he did not unlock the guest rooms.
“I don’t know anything about it. All three rooms were already open,” he said.
Pandey claimed he had been suffering from paralysis and said he and his wife seek justice.
Talking to PTI, Kashyap denied the allegations, calling them “baseless and politically motivated”.
He said the Congress was left with no issues to raise and was therefore spreading false propaganda.
In a statement posted on his social media group, Kashyap said, “Our workers are like deities to me, and their insult is intolerable. Congress is issue-less and the only work left for it is to spread misleading propaganda. The kind of incident that is being talked about has not happened at all.”
Senior Congress leader and former state chief minister Bhupesh Baghel uploaded a video of the employee levelling allegations against the minister on X and wrote, “Is only Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mother a mother, or are everyone’s mother also mothers? Now BJP has to answer this question.”
Kedar Kashyap is a senior minister of Chhattisgarh. He abused an employee in Jagdalpur and also hit him by grabbing his collar, Baghel alleged.
The BJP should take resignation of the minister. He should also apologise publicly, the Congress leader said.
“It would be good if he apologises while crying, but if the tears have dried up, then it will do even without crying,” he quipped.
In another post, Baghel wrote, “Prime Minister @narendramodi ji! If you respect every mother of the country then show the courage to immediately sack the ‘galibaaz’ (abusive) minister”.
State Congress president Deepak Baij also demanded Kashyap’s dismissal and an FIR in the matter.
“If a minister misbehaves like this with Class IV employees, where will the common man go? I have assured Khitendra Pandey that the Congress party stands with him. An FIR should be lodged against the minister, and he must apologise,” Baij said.
The Congress said it will stage protests in all district headquarters of the state on Sunday, demanding dismissal of Kashyap from the ministerial post, and will burn his effigy.
India