Guj BJP corporator tied to tree, beaten up

VADODARA: Angry residents of a municipal ward in Vadodara on Tuesday tied a BJP corporator to a tree and beat him up for “failing” to prevent demolition of their slum by the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) in May.

In a video of the incident that went viral, the corporator, with his clothes torn, was seen tied to a tree in Bapod area and pleading to the people around him that he had no knowledge about the civic body’s decision to raze the slum.

“This land belongs to the Collector (state government) and he is the one who passes an order. I am a small councillor. I have no

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idea about the decision taken by the municipal commissioner (regarding demolition),” the corporator,identified as Hasmukh Patel, was heard saying in Gujarati. Patel represents Bapod (Ward number 5).

He was later rescued by a team of police officers who took him to a nearby hospital for treatment.

City Police Commissioner Manoj Sashidhar said 66 people were arrested in connection with the case.

The residents of the slum that was located around Nani Bapod lake under ward number 5 were given alternative houses under a government rehabilitation programme, the commissioner said, adding that the attack was not pre-planned.