In an unexpected turn of events, BJP MLA from Ballia, Surendra Singh, has come out to defend Dhirendra Singh, an accused in the firing incident at a Panchayat meeting in which one person was killed.

The incident happened on Thursday evening.

“The accused was beaten and his father was also beaten. If someone attacks someone’s family, then a reaction to the action will happen. Dhirendra Singh has been my close associate and what happened was unfortunate,” he told reporters on Friday.

The MLA said that action should also be taken against those who beat up the family of the accused.

Meanwhile, six persons have been arrested in connection with the Ballia shooting incident.

The arrested persons include the brother of the main accused and has been identified as Devendra Pratap Singh. Police have named eight people in the FIR while another 15-20 unnamed people have also been listed in the complaint.

The incident took place in Ballia on Thursday during a meeting at the Panchayat Bhawan. The meeting had been called for selection of ration shops that were cancelled by the sub-divisional magistrate due to a dispute between the members of self-help groups who had gathered there. While the meeting was on, Jai Prakash Pal, a 46-year-old man, was gunned down.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had ordered the suspension of the sub-divisional magistrate (SDM), circle officer and all other policemen present at the spot in the Durjanpur village in Reoti area at the time of the incident.