A controversy has erupted within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Aligarh after the gunman of the party’s city president was accused of pointing a carbine at a Dalit leader during a party programme.
The incident took place on Wednesday at the Atal Smriti Sammelan held at the Habitat Centre, which falls under the Civil Lines police station area in Aligarh. Rakesh Sahay, city general secretary of the BJP’s Scheduled Caste Morcha, alleged that the gunman of the BJP Aligarh city president, Engineer Rajiv Sharma, misbehaved with party workers and aimed his weapon at him during an argument.
Speaking to the media, Sahay claimed the act reflected discrimination. “This happened because I am Dalit. Carbines will be pointed at us and cases will be filed against us. This gunman has been kept to intimidate party workers, not for security,” he alleged.
According to eyewitnesses, the dispute began when BJP regional president Durvijay Singh Shakya arrived at the venue. As he moved from the fifth floor towards the auditorium, several party workers, including Sahay, tried to take selfies with him. During this, workers were allegedly pushed aside, leading to heated arguments between the city president’s entourage and BJP workers.
Tensions rose again during the welcome ceremony on stage when Sahay, former mandal president Sanjay Sharma and Gorang Tiwari stepped forward to greet the regional president. They were reportedly stopped by the city president’s gunman, which led to another round of arguments. Senior party leaders intervened and managed to calm the situation for a while.
However, after the programme ended and the regional president left the venue, another confrontation broke out. During this argument, the gunman allegedly pulled out his carbine and pointed it at Rakesh Sahay, creating panic among party workers. Other BJP leaders and security staff stepped in to defuse the situation.
Metropolitan vice-president Sanjay Goyal confirmed that party workers were only trying to take photographs with the regional president. “There was pushing and arguments, but pointing a weapon at a worker is completely unacceptable,” he said, adding that the matter would be reported to the BJP’s state leadership.
BJP Aligarh city president Engineer Rajiv Sharma denied the allegations. He claimed that some workers created chaos at the event and manhandled the gunman when he tried to manage the crowd. “This entire episode has damaged the image of the party,” Sharma said.
Following the incident, the gunman, identified as Anoop Kumar, submitted a written complaint to Senior Superintendent of Police Neeraj Jadoun. Police officials said CCTV footage from the venue is being examined to establish the sequence of events. “An inquiry is underway, and all aspects of the incident are being verified,” a police officer said.
The incident has caused unease within the BJP’s local unit in Aligarh, with several leaders demanding accountability and restraint at party programmes, especially when senior leaders and workers are present.
