A group of people hit me, my action was 'natural': BJP MLA OP Sharma

NEW DELHI: Delhi BJP MLA OP Sharma, who is at the centre of a controversy in connection with the violence in Patiala House court complex, today claimed a group of people had hit him and that his action as "natural".

Sharma, who is an MLA from Vishwas Nagar here, said that when he was walking out of the court, some people were raising slogans allegedly in favour of Pakistan which led to a scuffle.

"When I objected to their slogans, they hit me and ran away. I and some other people then started chasing them and, thereafter whatever happened yesterday is before you as evidence," Sharma said.

He claimed that the picture of a person, who wore a jacket and beat up some persons, was not his, but TV channels and newspapers were naming him for it.

The BJP MLA was in the complex yesterday in connection with the hearing in the defamation case filed by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. Jaitley himself was in the complex for sometime.

"When someone will beat me up, the possible natural action that could be followed is what happened in this incident... Unknown people who were shouting in favour of Pakistan, were creating a wrong atmosphere. They should go there. Why they are residing in India," he said.

Yesterday, violence broke out in the court premises when groups of lawyers attacked journalists, students and teachers of JNU and unidentified people in and outside the court dubbing them as anti-nationals in the wake of a raging row over the arrest of a student leader of the university.

The violence took place when JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar against whom a sedition case has been filed was to be brought before metropolitan magistrate Lovleen for remand proceedings but was later taken elsewhere.