Ex-BJP MLA Aakash Vijayvargiya, 9 others acquitted in case of assault on MP official

A special court on Monday acquitted former BJP MLA Aakash Vijayvargiya, son of powerful Madhya Pradesh minister Kailash Vijayvargiya, in a case where a building inspector of the Indore Municipal Corporation was allegedly assaulted with a cricket bat in 2019.

Besides Aakash Vijayvargiya, an MLA of the BJP which was then in opposition, nine other accused in the case were also acquitted of various charges, including assault and criminal intimidation, by the special court set up for trial of criminal matters involving MPs/MLAs, said a defence lawyer.

The special court was presided over by Judge Dev Kumar. "The prosecution could not prove the charges in the case in the court. Due to this, the court acquitted Vijayvargiya and nine others," defence lawyer Udaypratap Singh Kushwah told reporters. "Another accused in the case was murdered (during pendency of the trial)."

He said the authenticity of the alleged video of the incident could not be proved in court and the complainant officer of the municipal corporation, Dhirendra Singh Bayas, and other witnesses did not clearly support the prosecution theory.

A case was registered against then-BJP MLA Akash Vijayvargiya and 10 others for allegedly beating up municipal building inspector Bayas with a cricket bat on 26 June 2019.

The FIR was registered under IPC sections 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 294 (abusive language), 323 (assault), 506 (criminal intimidation), 147 (rioting) and 148 (rioting armed with deadly weapon) of the Indian Penal Code.

The then-legislator from Indore was protesting against the demolition of a dilapidated house in the Ganji Compound area of the city when the alleged incident took place. A Congress government led by chief minister Kamal Nath was in office at that time.

A purported video of the incident went viral on social media, leading to the arrest of Aakash Vijayvargiya, who was later granted bail by the court.