Gorakhpur: The MP/MLA court in Gorakhpur has directed BJP MP Kamlesh Paswan to surrender before the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM) within 15 days in connection with a 15-year old case for staging protest and trying to set on fire the effigy of then chief minister.
Earlier in November 2022, the court had sentenced Paswan, MP from Bansgaon along with six others to one-and-half year imprisonment. Later, all the seven persons were released on a personal bond of Rs 20,000 each. Paswan had filed a petition to the special judge of the MP/MLA court against the order. The court on Monday rejected petition and ordered him along with the six others to surrender. Besides Paswan, the others are former MLA Chandresh Paswan, former Block Pramukh Sunil Paswan, senior leader Ram Brich Yadav, Mahesh Paswan and others.
In 2008, Paswan, who was then in the Samajhwadi Party protested at the gate of Baba Raghav Das Medical College in Gorakhpur against the arrest of party leaders Akhilesh Yadav and Shivpal Yadav, his uncle. The protesters set up a roadblock and also attempted to burn the chief minister's effigy. The police had dispersed the crowd and brought the situation under control. The then Medical College Chowki in-charge filed a report and case was lodged against eight protesters including Paswan under IPC sections 147 (rioting), 341 (wrongful restraint), 435 (mischief by explosive material) and 511 (offences punishable with imprisonment of life). One of the accused later died in the hospital during treatment.
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Paswan, a three-time MP had defected from Samajhwadi Party to the BJP in 2012.
