New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday attacked the BJP after a video surfaced on social media showing Delhi PWD Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh slapping a man who was recording a road inspection, alleging that “vote chori” had made the ruling party fearless of elections and voters.
The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said “vote theft buys not just the result, but the arrogance that follows”.
“A BJP minister from the Delhi government is seen slapping a young man in a video. His crime? He was making a video. A road was being dug up right in front of the minister, and he had a camera in his hand,” Gandhi said in a post in Hindi on X.
“This is the face of a power that no longer fears the voters,” he said.
“Ask a question on the street — a slap. Ask a question on paper leaks — a lathi charge. Ask a question in Parliament — the mic is switched off. These people do this because they no longer fear that elections can remove them,” Gandhi said.
“Vote theft buys this — not just the result, but the arrogance that follows,” he said.
“A government that takes victory for granted doesn’t need your consent — it demands your silence and ‘andhbhakti’,” Gandhi said.
Responding to Gandhi’s post, the PWD minister said, “Rahul ji, aap rehne do bhai, aapko kuch nahi pata” (Rahul ji, please leave it brother, you don’t know anything).
The remarks came after a political row erupted in Delhi over a video showing Parvesh Saheb Singh slapping a man during a road inspection in west Delhi’s Tilak Nagar.
The incident took place when the minister was inspecting a newly laid road in the area. AAP MLA Jarnail Singh, who was present at the spot, questioned the quality of the work and pulled out portions of the road surface by hand. A man standing nearby and recording the proceedings was then slapped by the minister.
Parvesh Singh, however, alleged that the man had abused his family members. He also accused Jarnail Singh of seeking a commission in the road repair work and said an FIR would be registered in the matter.
“When his (AAP MLA’s) worker abused my family, I did what any person would do after getting angry,” the minister said in a video message posted by the Delhi BJP on X.
The man allegedly slapped by the minister identified himself as Saheb Singh and said he was an associate of Jarnail Singh and handled the MLA’s social media work.
“I was recording a video of the inspection when Parvesh Singh snatched my phone and raised his hand at me, which is clearly visible in the video. His security personnel held my hand and grabbed me by the neck, and pulled me away,” Saheb Singh said.
Police said Saheb Singh has lodged a complaint against the minister at Vikaspuri police station.
Parvesh Singh, in his video message, said the clip circulated by the Aam Aadmi Party was presented without context and accused the local AAP MLA of demanding a commission from the road contractor.
“MLA Jarnail Singh had complained of poor road construction work, and when I visited the spot, I requested the AAP MLA to also come there,” he said.
The PWD minister alleged that Jarnail Singh called AAP workers to the site and they abused him and his family, which led him to react “in a manner any common man would”.
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