RAIPUR: The son of Raipur’s newly appointed mayor was arrested, along with four others, on Saturday night for cutting a birthday cake in the middle of the road on the same night that she took oath of office.
All the accused were granted bail at the police station, leading former CM Bhupesh Baghel to accuse the BJP administration of double standard as 10 Congress workers were recently arrested and sent to jail for cutting cakes and bursting firecrackers on the road. They spent a night in prison before getting bail.
Mayor Meenal Choubey of BJP had to extend an apology to the public when the video of her son’s birthday being celebrated on the road swirled around on social media. The mayor admitted that a mistake had been committed and said she would ensure it’s not repeated.
Raipur police arrested her son Mehul and four of his friends and relatives on Saturday evening. All five later got bail.
She tried to provide an explanation. “On the day of the swearing-in ceremony, there were many relatives at home and they chose to celebrate my son’s birthday in a grand manner on the street in front of the house. Though I learnt that no traffic was disrupted during the celebration, I admit a mistake was committed and no one should be allowed to do such a thing. I apologize if anyone had to face inconvenience because of us,” Choubey told TOI.
Chief secretary Amitabh Jain has instructed officials to take strict action against those disrupting traffic by celebrating birthdays and other events on roads that obstruct the public spaces.
Chhattisgarh high court had also rapped the state govt for inaction in such cases and asked why authorities were not doing enough as the trend of cutting cakes on the road was turning out to be contagious.
Former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel ripped into BJP, posting on X: “How will two laws work in one state? If mummy is the mayor, is cutting a cake on the street, bursting fireworks, all acceptable? The Youth Congress workers were jailed for celebrating a birthday on the roadside recently. If the law was imposed earlier, it should be abided by always.”
Raipur collector Gaurav Singh appealed to the public to strictly adhere to road safety rules and warned people not to celebrate birthdays on the road. Raipur SSP Lal Umed Singh said that celebrating birthdays or family events on the streets leads to traffic jams.
“These are criminal offences. In such cases, the person will be arrested, and a fine of Rs 5,000 rupees and a month’s imprisonment will be imposed,” he said.
