Raipur, Chhattisgarh: The Bhanupratappur by-election in the state is proving to be extremely volatile. Jharkhand police are on the lookout for BJP candidate Brahmanand Netam after he was accused of sexually assaulting a minor. BJP is trying its best that its candidate should not be arrested. The party has kept the candidate Brahmanand Netam hidden in its safe house since Monday.
According to sources, Brahmanand has been kept in the BJP office and house of party leaders in Bhanupratappur. There is anger among the party workers about this entire action. Jharkhand police reached Bhanupratappur on Monday. The local police are also advising the Jharkhand police to act cautiously, stating that the situation may worsen.
State Congress President Mohan Markam had disclosed in a press conference that BJP candidate Brahmanand Netam along with other 5 accused gang-raped a minor and pushed her into prostitution. Citing the case of the year 2019, Markam said that Netam should be arrested.
In the same case, Jamshedpur police registered a case against 6 people including Netam at Telco police station under the POCSO Act and the Prevention of Unethical Prostitution Act. That’s why now the team of Jamshedpur’s Telco police station has reached Bhanupratappur with a police team to arrest Brahmanand Netam. The BJP leaders are calling it a political conspiracy and saying that action is being taken deliberately in the alleged old case at this time when there is an election.
The by-election for the Bhanupratappur assembly seat in the Kanker district is to be held on December 5. The seat fell vacant after the death of Congress MLA Manoj Singh Mandavi last month. The Election Commission of India released the schedule for this election on November 5. This election will be conducted along with the Gujarat elections. Its result will also come with the results of the Gujarat-Himachal assembly elections.