New Delhi: A public event in Jaunpur, UP, meant to honour Maharaja Suheldev’s birth anniversary, took a dramatic turn. Samajwadi Party leader Mahendra Rajbhar, was slapped multiple times after being garlanded by Brijesh Rajbhar, who is a member of Suheldev Swabhiman Party (SSP).
The ceremony descended into chaos as party loyalist Brijesh Rajbhar, once affiliated with Mahendra’s party but now without any formal rank, walked on to the stage to garland him. He then inexplicably delivers several slaps on his face.
Audience stunned, police launch investigation
This incident stunned the audience and media present at the function.
Mahendra was once referred to as ‘Katappa’ by PM Narendra Modi when he was fielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party against gangster turned politician Mukhtar Ansari. He was fielded from the Mau Sadar seat in the 2017 Assembly elections.
He later joined Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party in 2022. He was closely associated with SBSP chief Om Prakash Rajbhar. However later, Mahendra opened a front against him and formed his own Suheldev Swabhiman Party in 2019.
A video of the assault went viral on social media. Akhilesh Yadav reacted to this incident and took to “X”. He condemned the attack and called it as another incident of “atrocities and insult” on the PDA, referring it as ‘pichde’ (backward classes), Dalits and ‘alpasankhyak’ (minorities).
वयोवृद्ध और वरिष्ठ नेता श्री महेंद्र राजभर जी पर हुआ हिंसक हमला भाजपा के राज में ‘पीडीए समाज’ पर लगातार बढ़ते जा रहे अपमानजनक व्यवहार और अत्याचार का एक और निंदनीय उदाहरण है।
भाजपा अगर सोचती है कि वो किसी समाज को अंदर से तोड़कर अपनी विभाजनकारी राजनीति को बनाए रखेगी तो ये उसकी… pic.twitter.com/HdVEhyzDs3
— Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) June 10, 2025
The event was organised to commemorate the “bhoomi pujan” for installing a statue of Maharaja Suheldev, an iconic figure of the community.
Mahendra Rajbhar has filed a complaint with the police against Brijesh Rajbhar. Police said that they are investigating the matter.
Speaking at the event, Brijesh said that the community’s deplorable plight is due to its own people. He stated, “When our own people are at the helm, they do not advocate for their community but prefer to serve themselves and work for their families. There are many leaders who have become tyrants possessed by Ghazi”, he added.
He said that the name of Maharaja Suheldev is being exploited by those who are deceiving and looting the community. Brijesh claimed that he had repeatedly warned the people from the community to abandon those who try to exploit them.
After concluding his speech, Brijesh garlanded Mahendra and started slapping him on the dais until people caught hold of him.
