Dy Sarpanch slapped at Balli gram sabha

TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
MARGAO:  The Balli gram sabha was plunged into unprecedented bedlam and chaos after a group of gram sabha members assaulted deputy Sarpanch Bamtu Velip  at the meeting held on Sunday morning.
The deputy sarpanch was slapped on his face and ear and had to be rushed to the Balli primary health centre and later to the Hospicio hospital as a precautionary measure, where he was discharged around noon. The incident occurred at the gram sabha when the meeting was discussing the issue of corruption which has been doing the rounds in the village ever since an NGO alleged a scam of Rs 25 lakhs a month ago pertaining to the period from 2007-11.
Sarpanch Alka Jagdish Potdar, who was chairing in the meeting, later lodged a complaint with the Cuncolim police against three persons involved in the attack on the deputy sarpanch.
The sarpanch informed that the three accused slapped the deputy sarpanch after he replied to a query that it is the job of the BDO and the BDO engineers to verify and report on the completion of projects. “When Velip gave his reply, the trio came rushing towards him and slapped and pulled him down. They then damaged the glass of the table and hurled chairs all around”, the sarpanch said.
Meanwhile,  Cuncolim police arrested two persons while one is still at large in connection with the attack on the Balli deputy sarpanch.
Cuncolim gave the names of arrested as Samrat Mallu Velip, Sagar Krishna Velip and Mahindra Velip of Balli All three, including Mahindra who is absconding, have been charged with assaulting a government servant on duty under sections 353, 341, 504, 506(2) read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC ).
Meanwhile, a team of Cuncolim police which went to the panchayat hall to conduct site panchayat were asked by the people to arrest the third accused without further delay.