MP: After missing person found dead, kin say he was slapped repeatedly by man for identity; show video to cops

The family members of a mentally-challenged person, whose body was found in Madhya Pradesh's Neemuch district days after he went missing, complained to the police saying that a video has come to light in which the victim can be seen being slapped repeatedly by a man, who is asking him to reveal his identity, an official said on Saturday.

The state Congress claimed that the man seen slapping the victim in the video is a local BJP leader, and demanded action against him.

The video purportedly shows the accused asking the victim whether his name is Mohammed, besides demanding his Aadhaar card before repeatedly slapping him.

Bhawarlal Jain, a resident of Sarsi village of Ratlam district, had gone missing on May 15 after visiting a religious programme in Chittorgarh in Rajasthan, and was found dead on Friday morning on Rampura Road under the jurisdiction of Manasa police station, some 38 kms from the district headquarters, police said.

"But after performing the last rites of the deceased, his family members came to know about the purported video and informed the police about it," K L Dangi, in-charge of Manasa police station, said.

After the video surfaced, the police registered a case under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 302 (murder) and 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), and launched a probe.

As per the preliminary information, the man seen in the video assaulting the mentally-challenged was identified as Dinesh Kushwaha, a resident of Manasa, he said.

The man who assaulted the victim and the one who shot the video are absconding, he said.

"The video was probably shot on May 19, but further investigation is underway," Dangi added.

The video purportedly shows the accused slapping the victim repeatedly while asking for his Aadhaar card. The accused is heard asking the victim if his name is Mohammed and later starts slapping repeatedly while asking for his Aadhaar card, he said.

Meanwhile, Congress veteran and Rajya Sabha member Digvijaya Singh in a tweet termed the accused Dinesh Kushwaha as BJP leader.

"I have got information that a crime has been registered against Dinesh Kushwaha of BJP under (IPC) section 302 (murder). Let's see if he gets arrested or not," Singh said in a tweet while tagging another tweet about the Neemuch incident.

MP Congress chief Kamal Nath also raised questions over the law-and-order situation in the state.

"What is happening in Madhya Pradesh after all? Tribals were lynched in Seoni, incidents of Guna, Mhow, Mandla and now an elderly person whose name is said to be Bhanwarlal Jain in Manasa of Neemuch district of the state," he said in a tweet.

The accused in Neemuch is also associated with BJP like those involved in the Seoni incident, he said and added that the government is only focusing on events while criminals are scot-free.

When asked about the Congress's allegation, state BJP secretary Rajneesh Agrawal told PTI, "The incident is unfortunate. An accused is an accused and it has nothing to do with the party politics. None of the people involved in such an act will be spared by the state government. Our party believes in the rule of law."

He alleged that the previous Congress governments were involved in protecting the criminals.

State Home Minister Narottam Mishra said a case has been registered against Kushwaha and probe is on.