Out on bail after assaulting a Municipal Corporation officer with a cricket bat, BJP MLA Akash Vijayvargiya on Sunday said he was "not embarrassed" about the incident and prayed that he doesn't get a chance to "bat again". "In such a situation when a woman was being dragged in front of the police, I couldn't think of doing anything else, not embarrassed at what I did. But I pray to god ki vo dobara ballebazi karne ka avsar na de. (I pray to God that I don't get a chance to bat again)," Akash, who is the son of BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya, told ANI. The BJP has planned a celebratory march in Indore today. A video from Saturday showed party workers indulging in celebratory gunfire outside Akash's office after he was granted bail by a special court in Bhopal. He was earlier sent to judicial custody till July 7. In a video that went viral earlier this week, the 34-year-old legislator was seen chasing and beating house inspector Dharmendra Bayas, who was also assaulted by BJP workers accompanying the MLA and local residents. Another corporation official also suffered injuries in the attack. Based on a complaint from the house inspector, Akash and 10 others were booked under various IPC sections, including for assaulting a public servant, criminal intimidation and unlawful assembly. Madhya Pradesh: Celebratory firing outside BJP MLA Akash Vijayvargiya's office in Indore after he got bail in an assault case. (29-06) pic.twitter.com/d1j2d03hLY — ANI (@ANI) June 30, 2019 Read | Vijayvargiya Jr swung bat for building that was declared danger more than a year ago While the BJP alleges that Akash was angered by officials misbehaving with women tenants, Bayas said: “Nothing like this happened at all. Everyone was there, the media was there, police were there. Why would we do anything like this? There is no proof of any of these things because it simply didn’t happen." Bayas added that he lives in fear and has sought police protection. In his remarks after the attack, Akash defended his actions saying: “In the BJP, we have been taught, pehle aavedan, phir nivedan aur phir danadan (first a plea, then request, and then attack).” The video footage sparked outrage across the country, but Akash was seen as a symbol of courage by Indore BJP. Protests were held in Indore where slogans like "Akash ji diler hai, BJP ke sher hai (Akash ji has courage, he is the lion of the BJP)" filled the air. On the streets of Indore, there is much debate on Vijayvargiya’s actions. For some, the assault went too far. But closer to Ganji compound, where the dilapidated houses No. 52 and 53 — they are part of one two-storey building — still stand after being marked for demolition by IMC, the voices become unanimous. “Thik kia (He did right),” they say.
