The fresh round of controversy erupted after a mahapanchayat of the
The mahapanchayat, which was attended by several politicians, including MLAs belonging to the Gurjar community from Haryana and
Fuelling tensions again in the Gwalior-Chambal region ahead of the Assembly elections, the mahapanchayat turned nasty as the participants went on a rampage at the District Collectorate's (DC) office, pelting stones, and damaging vehicles, including those of the DC and Superintendent of Police.
Police had to use lathi charge and tear gas shells to control the crowd.
Some police personnel, as well as at least a dozen protesters, were injured as a result of the violence.
Later, about two dozen of protesters were detained and 35 leaders of the Gurjar community were booked under the charges of rioting and attacking public servants.
The Gwalior police have lodged an FIR against BSP MP from Bijnor Malook Nagar, SP MLA from Sardhna Atul Pradhan and sitting Congress leader from Morena Rakesh Mawai.
Although the debate over Mihir Bhoj's legacy was centuries old as reports suggest, a fresh controversy in Madhya Pradesh erupted after a life-size statue of the king was installed in Gwalior city's Chirwal area in 2019.
The Gwalior Municipal Corporation (GMC) prefixed the word "Gurjar" with the inscription of Mihir Bhoj's name on a plinth of the life-size statue, which did not go down well with the Rajput community.
The mention of the word paved the way for a dispute between the Rajputs and
In 2021, the dispute reached the
However, the dispute over the matter continued to escalate between these two communities in Gwalior where both the communities have a sizable population.
On their part, the Gurjars argued that Mihir Bhoj belonged to the community and therefore the word "Gurjar" needed to be added with his name on all his statues across the country.