Haryana: Woman slaps JJP MLA visiting flood-affected areas
What's the story
Furious over floods and the breach of a small dam in Haryana's Kaithal district, a woman slapped Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) MLA Ishwar Singh on Wednesday when he arrived to meet those affected by the flood.
She asked, "Why have you come now?" as other residents also manhandled Singh.
A video clip of the incident has gone viral on social media.
Context
Why does this story matter?
After heavy rainfall over the weekend in North and Northwest India, all major rivers in the region are in spate.
Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, and Punjab are experiencing flooding, along with Haryana, where 10 districts have been reportedly affected and crops have been damaged in fields spanning three lakh acres.
At least 15 people have also died in Haryana due to rain-related incidents.
Incident
JJP is part of Haryana's ruling alliance with BJP
The incident took place at Bhatia village under the Guhla Cheeka Assembly constituency on Wednesday after a small dam, locally called bundh, was breached as the Ghaggar River swelled up.
Notably, the JJP, founded in 2018 by Haryana's Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Singh Chautala, is part of the state's ruling alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Twitter Post
Where were you for five years, residents ask Singh
#WATCH | Haryana: In a viral video, a flood victim can be seen slapping JJP (Jannayak Janta Party) MLA Ishwar Singh in Guhla as he visited the flood affected areas
— ANI (@ANI) July 12, 2023
"Why have you come now?", asks the flood victim pic.twitter.com/NVQmdjYFb0
Statement
I have forgiven her: Singh
Reacting to the incident, Singh said he has "forgiven" the woman and won't initiate any legal action against her.
"The woman said that had I wanted, the dam wouldn't have breached. Though I explained to her that it was a natural calamity and there has been heavy rainfall during the past few days," he said.
Opposition
AAP corners Haryana government
Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which is in opposition in Haryana but in power in neighboring Delhi and Punjab, attacked the state's ruling alliance over the incident.
AAP leader Anurag Dhanda claimed, "The people are fed up with the ruling coalition's corruption and incompetence. Floods have destroyed crops but no help has been received from the government. That's why public anger erupted."
Information
Singh grabbed headlines earlier for appearing MA exams
In 2020, the Guhla MLA made headlines when he sat for the first-year MA Political Science exams at Kurukshetra University during the COVID-19 pandemic. He was 72 at the time. Prior to that, he completed a master's degree in public administration and law.
Scale
Dam breach reported in few other villages
Reportedly, the Ghaggar, Markanda, and Yamuna rivers are flowing above the danger mark and have inundated 554 villages in Ambala, Kaithal, Karnal, Kurukshetra, Panchkula, and Panipat districts.
Incidents of dam breaches were reported in Panipat's Nawada and Tamshabad.
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar visited the flood-affected areas in the Ambala district on Wednesday and took stock of the relief work.