BHOPAL: Still absconding on police files, BJP MLA from Narsinghpur seat Zalim Singh Patel -- accused in a recent attempt to murder case -- walked into the state assembly on Wednesday morning. Zalim Singh and his son Mani Nagendra Singh alias Monu Patel are wanted in an alleged firing and rioting incident which grievously injured five persons in Gotegaon in Narsinghpur on November 18. Before the urban civic polls in the state, the Election Commission (EC) had also ordered the arrest of father-son duo but the state police maintained the accused were absconding.

When Zalim Singh reached the state assembly on Wednesday, a peeved Congress MLA from Lahar seat Dr Govind Singh told reporters, "The BJP's criminal legislators are walking into the state assembly and there is no one to stop them. Now ruling party will justify the presence of its absconding MLA in the assembly. There is nothing called rule of law in this state anymore. The government can't arrest its own offender MLA but goes ahead registering false cases against Congress workers before elections."

Annoyed that his supporters were denied tickets for the urban civic body polls, Zalim Singh and Monu allegedly resorted to violence on November 18. At 2 in the afternoon that day, Zalim Patel and Monu along with their supporters brutally attacked the BJP's urban general secretary in Gotegaon Mukesh Chouksey with firearms, bombs, sticks, batons and baseball bats. While Chouksey suffered two bullet injuries, three others were also injured including one severely.

Mukesh Chouksey and his supporters were beaten-up by the MLA and his men in the town's busy bus-stand area. Police have at least a dozen serious cases including murder charges registered against the MLA's son Monu. Reporters asked home minister Babulal Gaur why Zalim Singh was not being arrested by the police when he was present in the assembly? The home minister explained that a Special Investigation Team has been constituted to probe the Gotegaon-Narsinghpur incident and so the case has moved out of the district police jurisdiction. Hence, the old case and order does stand any longer."

