Bihar minister's son thrashed after he allegedly opened fire to scare away children from his orchard

PATNA: Bihar’s tourism minister and BJP leader Narayan Prasad’s son and brother were badly thrashed at a village in West Champaran district on Sunday, after they allegedly opened fire in the air to scare away a group of children who were playing cricket in his orchard-cum-farmland.
The incident took place at Hardiya Koeri Tola village under Muffasil police station of West Champaran district.
Some Patna-based news portals and other news channels beamed a footage in which the minister’s son Bablu Kumar can be seen being roughed up by a group of villagers.Police said the villagers, in the course of scuffle, also snatched away a gun from Bablu which he used to scare away the children.
Villagers told the police that the trouble broke out when the minister's son Bablu went to ask the children who were playing cricket there to clear his orchard-cum- farmland. Bablu allegedly thrashed some of the children and also took out his gun and open a fire in the air to scare away the children.
Bablu, who has been admitted to a hospital at Bettiah, however, said that no shot was fired.
Confirming the incident, West Champaran SP Upendra Nath Verma told a news agency that Bablu was accompanied by his uncle Harendra Prasad, manager Vijay Sah and other associates. All of Bablu’s associates sustained injuries in the clash.
Bablu told police that he and his men went to the farmland upon learning about an attempt of “land encroachment" in the orchard. He said they were assaulted and robbed of the licensed gun by the villagers. Their vehicles also were vandalized by the villagers.
The minister Prasad, however, accused the villagers of trying to encroach his land in the orchard. He said that villagers first attacked his younger brother who had gone to the village to oppose encroachment on his land by the locals. “A few of other members of my family were also thrashed,” Prasad, the BJP MLA from Nautan, told reporters.
"After my family members were beaten up by the villagers, my son went to the spot with his licensed gun and pistol but he was also attacked with stones. The villagers also vandalized my vehicle,” the ministers told reporters.
Bihar’s main opposition RJD attacked the Nitish government over the incident involving the minister’s son and brother.
“Did the minister's son have the right to attack the children who were playing cricket? When the minister's son and brother will break the law then who will enforce the law in the state?” asked RJD’s senior leader and former MLA Shakti Singh Yadav.
The SP further said, heavy police deployment has been made in the area to maintain order. He said police were investigating the allegations leveled by both the warring groups.