Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): In an alleged insensitive behaviour, district collector Dindori Ratnakar Jha on Tuesday instructed a youth to clean spit with his bare hands.
A video of the incident showing the collector instructing youth to clean the spit went viral on social media.
Jha was on a sudden inspection of the district hospital as he was receiving complaints about the mismanagements at the hospital.
While passing through parking area of the hospital, he spotted a youth spitting gutkha. This irked him so much that he went there and asked him to do sit-ups. He later forced the youth to clean spit.
The youth, who refused to comment, belonged to Sarhari village of Dindori district and had come to hospital along with her relatives.
Though Ratnakar Jha could not be contacted for comment even after repeated attempts, a senior IAS officer on condition of anonymity said that it was an inhuman behaviour by a public servant.
“It is true that no is permitted to spit at public place. There is no written rule to give punishment for such irresponsible acts by the public, but a punishment that hurts the self-respect of a person can’t be given for such acts. And, it is simply an inhuman behaviour by a public servant,” the officer said.
RTI activist Ajay Dubey said that it was not the first time when IAS officer Ratnakar Jha as a district collector showed irresponsible behaviour. “One day ago, he (Jha) issued an order that people who are not vaccinated would not be allowed to travel in buses. Today, he forced a youth to clean the spit. It is completely an insensitive and inhuman behaviour by the collector,” Dubey said, demanding Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Madhya Pradesh Chief Secretary should take cognizance of the issues and take action accordingly.
