Back in public eye: Madhya Pradesh minister who put party in a spot with remarks on Col Sofiya Qureshi
After his remarks on Operation Sindoor caused an uproar, Madhya Pradesh Tribal Welfare Minister Vijay Shah made his first public appearance in 17 days when he visited the family of a rape-murder victim in Khandwa.
Shah was booked by the Madhya Pradesh Police last month after saying in a public meeting in Mhow on May 11 that India taught a lesson to those responsible for the Pahalgam terror attack using 'their own sister'. While he did not name anyone, it has been alleged that he was alluding to Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, who had briefed the media when Operation Sindoor was underway.
The minister is now under investigation by a Supreme Court-ordered special investigation team (SIT), and had not been seen in public until May 28, when he visited the grieving family of a woman who was gangraped and murdered in Khandwa district's Khalwa region.
Both the Madhya Pradesh High Court and the Supreme Court have reprimanded the minister for his statement, and Shah has apologised for the comments three times.
The ruling BJP went into damage control mode, and the central leadership of the party is yet to take a call on Shah's future.
While his visit to Khandwa on May 28 marks his first public outing since the backlash, he did not speak to the media. Local BJP sources said Shah spent over two hours with the victim's family and promised both financial support and systemic interventions. He reportedly handed over a Rs 60,000 cheque, committed to building a tin roof for the family's house, and promised further financial assistance, sources said.
'He also said that a young girl in the family who had dropped out of school would be re-enrolled. Monthly monitoring meetings are to be initiated in the area to track school dropouts,' a BJP leader said.
The Opposition Congress had launched a sarcastic 'missing minister' campaign, plastering posters across Indore and Bhopal with his photograph and a mock reward of Rs 11,000 for anyone who could find him.
During this period, Shah skipped the special Cabinet meeting in the historic Rajwada palace to commemorate regional icon, Ahilyabai Holkar, on May 20 and another special Cabinet meeting hosted in the scenic town of Pachmarhi on Tuesday, to honour tribal icon and freedom fighter, Raja Bhabhoot Singh.
Shah had also skipped the 300th birth anniversary events of Ahilyabai Holkar, for which Prime Minister Narendra Modi had arrived in Bhopal on May 31.
The Supreme Court has extended the operation of its interim order protecting Shah from arrest. It also closed the suo motu proceedings pending before the Madhya Pradesh High Court as it is already seized of the matter.
The SIT had submitted its report to the Supreme Court, which contained investigation details like forensic evidence, and sought more time for the probe.
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