Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Sunday removed the collector of Surajpur district after a video of the IAS officer went viral on social media in which he can be seen slapping a youth for violating lockdown rules. Ranbir Sharma was transferred to the secretariat and replaced by Raipur Jila Panchayat CEO Gaurav Kumar Singh, an order issued on Sunday informed.
“An incident of Surajpur district collector Ranbir Sharma misbehaving with a young man has been brought to my attention by social media. This is extremely unfortunate and condemnable. No such incident shall be tolerated in Chhattisgarh. Have given instructions to remove collector Ranbir Sharma with immediate effect,” a rough translation of Baghel’s tweet, posted in Hindi, read.
The IAS Association also condemned the behaviour and wrote on Twitter: “It is unacceptable and against the basic tenets of the service and civility. Civil servants must have empathy and provide a healing touch to society at all times, more so in these difficult times.”
In the almost 3-minute-long video, he was seen slapping a man while enforcing lockdown norms in the district. He was also seen instructing the police officers accompanying him to beat the man.
The video evoked widespread anger on social media with several netizens demanding action against the IAS officer’s abuse of power. Sharma, however, apologised for his action, saying in a statement that he never had any intention to “disrespect or belittle the person in the video.”
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“He was a 23-year-old man over-speeding on a sports bike. He had a fake slip which he claimed was for vaccination. We have to be a little strict with people to ensure that lockdown norms are followed. However, I apologize for my behaviour today,” Sharma said, while refuting claims that the person seen in the video is a minor, according to The Indian Express.
