Protests Erupt in Haroli Constituency Over Arrest of Village Panchayat Chief

In the village panchayat of Khadd in the Haroli assembly constituency, the arrest of the village head, Veerendra Heer, on charges of cutting down a mango tree has sparked anger among the villagers. On Monday, villagers staged a strong protest, led by leaders of the BJP and Bahujan Samaj Party, outside the Haroli police station. They protested against the arrest and accused the panchayat chief of being framed with false charges in an unlawful manner.

Protesters Raise Slogans Against Deputy Chief Minister During the demonstration, the protestors also chanted slogans against Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri. BJP leader Professor Ram Kumar alleged that the Congress-led state government is exploiting people through anti-Dalit decisions. He stated that in the same area, heavy monsoon rains have caused people to suffer losses amounting to lakhs of rupees, yet the government and administration are more interested in filing baseless cases and harassing them.

He further mentioned that instead of providing relief to the affected people, the government is falsely accusing them, a situation which will not be tolerated at any cost. Bahujan Samaj Party leader Lekhraj Katnauria accused that the panchayat chief is being targeted due to his Dalit identity. He stated that a false case has been registered against him to frame him and get him arrested.

He emphasized that if the police department does not withdraw the First Information Report (FIR) and release the panchayat chief unconditionally, the protests will escalate into a major movement. He stressed that the responsibility for handling this situation lies with the state government and the police administration. He accused officials from the Forest Department of attempting to save themselves by making the village panchayat chief a scapegoat.