U’khand director of basic education assaulted by BJP MLA’s supporters over renaming school, case filed

Dehradun: Basic education director Ajay Kumar Naudiyal was allegedly assaulted by supporters of BJP MLA Umesh Sharma Kau inside his own office on Saturday afternoon after a dispute broke out over the renaming of Asthal Primary School.In his complaint, Naudiyal said Kau arrived with 10–12 people and entered his office around 12.10 pm without prior notice. He alleged the MLA "verbally abused staff and asked them to leave". Once he was alone, his phone was taken away, and he was threatened, shoved, and ordered to resolve the school renaming issue immediately.
Naudiyal said staff later alerted police, after which the door was opened. He alleged that the group assaulted him and staff who intervened, mistreated female employees, damaged office property, tore files, and issued threats before leaving. He also claimed they warned him and his staff of further harm.He added, "Two people had already visited earlier and I had informed them that the matter was beyond the directorate's authority and had already been referred to the govt."Naudiyal suffered injuries to his face and forehead and was taken to Coronation District Hospital, where he received multiple stitches.Raipur police station sub-inspector Sanjay Rawat said a case has been registered under BNS sections 121A (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 191(2) (rioting), 324(3) (mischief), 351(3) (criminal intimidation), and 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace). He added that police have begun identifying the accused using CCTV footage and eyewitness accounts.Kau denied the allegations, saying he had gone to the office on behalf of a family that had donated land for the school and wanted it named after an elder."They had been demanding the same for months and approached me recently. I wrote to the directorate on their behalf. We came because they wanted to meet officials. Staff had gathered in the office, and I tried to calm the situation when it escalated. It was staff members who resorted to violence and damaged furniture. The truth will come out in the investigation," he said.BJP has condemned the incident, calling it "unfortunate", and said it would seek an explanation from the MLA. State BJP president and Rajya Sabha MP Mahendra Bhatt said the party does not support lawlessness or violence. "Public issues can be raised, but no one can be allowed to violate the law. The party has taken the matter seriously and will seek an explanation. Strict action should be taken against whoever is found guilty," he said, adding that education department staff should exercise restraint to ensure board exams are not affected.Congress leader Harish Rawat also condemned the incident. "It does not matter which party the MLA belongs to. Public representatives must maintain decorum. Violence against govt employees has no place in a democracy. There are proper channels to raise grievances," he said.Following the incident, directorate employees held a protest outside the education directorate and announced a boycott of board examination duties, saying the episode highlighted the lack of safety for govt officials.(With inputs from Kalyan Das and Kautilya Singh)