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Husband Of BJP MLA’s Daughter Attacked Outside Court, Couple Get Police Protection

Sakshi Misra and her husband Ajitesh Kumar had alleged threat to their life from her father for marrying Kumar, a Dalit man.
Video screenshot

The husband of BJP MLA Rajesh Misra’s daughter, who approached the Allahabad High Court seeking protection, was beaten up outside the court on Monday. The couple has been on the run since the announcement of their marriage last week.

Sakshi Misra, 23, and her husband Ajitesh Kumar, 29, had alleged threat to their life from her father for marrying Kumar, a Dalit man.

“Only Ajitesh was beaten up. It’s not known who were these people. But it proves that there is indeed a threat to their life for which they were seeking protection,” their lawyer told reporters outside the court, ANI quoted.

The high court has given directions to the police for the couple’s protection. The couple was present in court.

On Monday, multiples news agencies reported that a couple had been abducted from the high court premises. IANS quoted eyewitness as saying that it was Sakshi and her husband who had been kidnapped at gunpoint by armed men.

The Prayagraj police confirmed that a couple had been abducted and the suspected vehicle had been caught. However, it said details including the woman’s name, would be revealed after cross-verification.

Sakshi had on 10 June posted two videos on social media in which she is heard telling her father that he should let her live in peace with her husband.

She also appealed for police protection, alleging that she feared a threat to her life from her father, brother and their associate.

The MLA from Bithari Chainpur in Bareilly has, however, said he posed no threat to anyone and his daughter has the right to take her own decisions.

In the petition filed in court, the couple said that the father is unhappy with the marriage as Sakshi Misra is a Brahmin and her husband a Dalit.

The petition said the MLA and the police should allow them to live in peace as they are both adults and had married out of their free will.

However, the MLA rejected his daughter’s charge.

“Whatever is going on against me in the media is wrong,″ he said in a statement issued Thursday.

“My daughter is an adult and has the right to take her own decisions. Neither I nor my men or any member of my family has given any threat to life to anyone,” Misra said.

“I and my family are busy in our work. I am doing the people’s work in my constituency and presently running a BJP membership campaign. There is no threat to anyone from me,” he said.

Deputy Inspector General R K Pandey had said earlier that he has asked the Bareilly police chief to provide security to the couple. But he added that police did not know the couple’s current location.

In her video message, Sakshi had also appealed to other MPs and MLAs to not side with her father, also known as Pappu Bhartaul, on the issue.

(With PTI inputs)

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.