A case has been registered against 34 supporters of a senior Congress leader in Madhya Pradesh for taking out a rally at Sanver in Indore district during the opening of his election office amid COVID-19 pandemic, officials said on Wednesday.
The election office of Premchand Borasi 'Guddu', a former Lok Sabha MP, was opened in view of the upcoming by- election to Sanver assembly seat. The leader is keen to contest the bypoll from there as a Congress candidate.
However, dates from the state bypolls are yet to be announced.
A large number of Congress workers on Tuesday took out a rally, which also included a convoy of vehicles, at Sanver, about 30 kms from Indore, officials said.
These workers also raised slogans and waved party flags, they said.
In-charge of Sanver Police Station, Santosh Kumar Dudhi, said that in view of the coronavirus outbreak, the district administration has banned rallies and processions.
People, who took part in this rally, allegedly violated the guidelines by not wearing masks and not maintaining social distancing, he said.
"Thirty-four people who participated in the rally were booked under IPC sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (unlawful and negligent act which is likely to spread infection of any disease dangerous to life) and other provisions," the official said.
He said that Borasi's name was not included in the FIR as he did not attend the rally and reached the office later.
"Others who took part in the rally are being identified on the basis of video footages," he said.
Bypolls to 27 assembly seats in Madhya Pradesh are necessitated following the resignation of 25 Congress MLAs and death of two legislators.
All the MLAs who resigned from Congress later joined the BJP.
These 27 constituencies included Sanver, from where the former Congress MLA Tulsiram Silawat, a minister in the present BJP regime, had resigned.
Borasi and Silawat had tested coronavirus positive in the last one-and-a-half months and recovered after treatment.
