"Have No Ties To Family": Dhirendra Shastri On Brother's Alleged Firing Case

Dhirendra Krishna Shastri, head priest of Bageshwar Dham, said that he has no ties with his estranged brother Shaligram or his family after the latter was accused of allegedly shooting at a person within the Rajnagar Police Station limits in Chhatarpur, Madhya Pradesh.He said that the law should take its course and called for strict punishment against the perpetrators."I had already spoken about Shaligram ji three years ago. I have no connection with him; in fact, I have no ties to my family. Since the Chhatarpur district and my family are vast, incidents of one kind or another keep happening here. Let the law take its course and appropriate legal action be taken; whoever is responsible should face the strictest possible punishment. I earnestly request that I not be dragged into every single matter," Shastri told ANI.According to Chhatarpur Superintendent of Police (SP) Rajat Saklecha, the altercation stemmed from a land dispute. The injured individual has been identified as Motilal Kushwaha, who said he was shot at and beaten with a stick.Police took the injured person to the district hospital, and the investigation into the incident is underway.The victim, Motilal Kushwaha, claimed that he was attacked by Shaligram and other men, who beat him up and opened fire. He accused Shaligram of attempting to seize a piece of land in the village.Kushwaha said, "Shaligram Garg, Ankit Mishra, and two or three others were there. They beat me up and opened fire. They fired three or four rounds from a pistol. I was also hit here on the ear. Shaligram Garg struck me here with a stick. He was trying to take over people's land--he had already seized a lot of village land. He hit me on the head with a stick here, and he also fired shots from a pistol. I saw him firing with my own eyes. There were four or five people." Dhirendra Krishna Shastri, head priest of Bageshwar Dham, said that he has no ties with his estranged brother Shaligram or his family after the latter was accused of allegedly shooting at a person within the Rajnagar Police Station limits in Chhatarpur, Madhya Pradesh.He said that the law should take its course and called for strict punishment against the perpetrators."I had already spoken about Shaligram ji three years ago. I have no connection with him; in fact, I have no ties to my family. Since the Chhatarpur district and my family are vast, incidents of one kind or another keep happening here. Let the law take its course and appropriate legal action be taken; whoever is responsible should face the strictest possible punishment. I earnestly request that I not be dragged into every single matter," Shastri told ANI.According to Chhatarpur Superintendent of Police (SP) Rajat Saklecha, the altercation stemmed from a land dispute. The injured individual has been identified as Motilal Kushwaha, who said he was shot at and beaten with a stick.Police took the injured person to the district hospital, and the investigation into the incident is underway.The victim, Motilal Kushwaha, claimed that he was attacked by Shaligram and other men, who beat him up and opened fire. He accused Shaligram of attempting to seize a piece of land in the village.Kushwaha said, "Shaligram Garg, Ankit Mishra, and two or three others were there. They beat me up and opened fire. They fired three or four rounds from a pistol. I was also hit here on the ear. Shaligram Garg struck me here with a stick. He was trying to take over people's land--he had already seized a lot of village land. He hit me on the head with a stick here, and he also fired shots from a pistol. I saw him firing with my own eyes. There were four or five people." (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)