'Threat' video: 350 BJP cadres, including Kailash Vijayvargiya, booked

Indore, Jan 05: BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya is among the nearly 350 party cadres who have been booked in Madhya Pradesh's Indore after a video purportedly showing him 'threatening' government officials went viral on social media, police said on Sunday.

The video, apparently shot during a protest organised by the BJP in Residency area of Indore on Friday, showed Vijayvargiya saying, "Our Sangh (RSS) leaders , otherwise (we) would have set Indore on fire today."

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat and other senior leaders were in the city since Thursday for an internal conclave of the organisation.

The BJP organised the protest here on Friday, alleging that city officials were biased and taking "politically motivated" action against party workers.

"Based on a complaint by a tehsildar (revenue officer), we registered an FIR late Saturday night against nearly 350 protesters, including Vijayvargiya and BJP MP from Indore Shankar Lalwani," Sanyogitaganj police station's inspector Narendra Singh Raghuvanshi said.

They have been booked under various Indian Penal Code Sections, including 143 (unlawful assembly), 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot), 188 (disobedience of an order duly promulgated by public servant) and 506 (criminal intimidation), he said. A probe was underway, he said, adding no one was arrested so far.

Vijayvargiya, 63, led a protest in his hometown Indore on Friday while alleging that the Congress-led Madhya Pradesh government was targeting the BJP cadres. The BJP had invited top civic and police officials for discussing this issue at the protest venue, but senior officials did not turn up. Later, when some junior-level officials reached the spot, Vijayvargiya was peeved.

In the video, the BJP leader was heard saying, "Have they (top officers) become so big? The officers should understand that they are public servants." An official was heard telling Vijayvargiya that he had no information about BJP leaders' invite to top officials. An angry Vijayvargiya was then heard saying, "Is there some protocol or not? We are making a written request to government officials that we want to meet them. Will they not even inform us that they are out of town? We will not tolerate this at all."

"Our Sangh (RSS) leaders are (here), otherwise would have set Indore on fire today," he was heard saying. His statement came in the midst of a drive being carried out in the state against land mafias, to demolish unlawful buildings.