MP: Restaurant Owner Slaps Municipal Employee During Anti-Encroachment Drive; Scuffle Video Goes Viral

Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh): A restaurant owner created a stir as he slapped a municipal employee during an anti-encroachment drive in Gwalior, on Thursday. The entire incident was captured on a video.

The situation escalated when the owner of an illegal hotel and restaurant sat in front of a JCB machine to stop the drive. When municipal employees tried to remove him, he slapped one of them. The deputy commissioner, Amarsaty Gupta, and Atibal Yadav were also threatened. The hotel owner, Ramesh Bhadoria, runs an illegal restaurant and dance bar.

In the recorded video, it is evident that the owner defiantly occupied the area slated for removal, refusing to comply with the operation. He threatened the employees and remained seated stubbornly. Then, when one of the employee hold his hand and dragged him, the owner pushed them and slapped one of them in defense. A municipal official, attempting to manage the situation, can be heard shouting, "Don't show your political influence; I've been telling you repeatedly."

The municipal corporation had received complaints about illegal hotels, lodges, dance bars, and cafes operating in the posh MP Nagar colony of City Center. During the action, when encroachments were removed from "The Sky Disco and Lounge" and "Regnar Cafe," the owners got angry and started attacking the municipal employees. Deputy Commissioner Atul Singh Yadav stated that they would report the assault on the municipal staff to senior officials.