Mumbai: Girjesh Goud, widely known as 'The Living Statue' or 'Golden Man,' was allegedly assaulted by a police constable at Bandra Bandstand on Monday night. A video clip of the incident has also gone viral on social media sites. As of now, no formal case has been registered; however, authorities have initiated an inquiry.
Goud Narrates Whole Incident In Social Media Post
The video was initially posted by Goud on his Instagram account. Those present at the scene, including the person who recorded the video, allege that the police constable was intoxicated. It remains to be investigated whether the constable was indeed under the influence of alcohol or engaged in any other questionable behaviour. He captioned his post as, "This video was shot yesterday around 8pm at Bandra Bandstand. This drunk police constable came to me and launched an assault using his baton. I tried to stop him and also asked him why he was beating me, but he continued his assault."
"Later, he held me by my neck, choking my breath. I requested him multiple times to let go off me, but he didn't let me loose. Meanwhile, he also threatened to take me to the police station and file a case against me. I'm an artist, who has no one but my Instagram (fans) family. I request you all to share this video as much as possible," he wrote further.
In the video, one can see the policeman in a drunken state, launching an attack on Goud. Luckily there were people around who immediately intervened in the matter. However, the arrogant cop didn't bother about the resistance by the crowd and continued his assault. He was then taken away from Goud by the end of the video.
DCP Zone 9 issues statement
Krishnakant Upadhyay, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zone 9, stated, “An inquiry is underway. The constable was following lawful instructions provided by his superiors. In the video, you can observe the constable asking Goud to leave, but he did not comply, and the constable only pointed his stick without using force. Goud has previously faced charges related to not being in the designated area and soliciting illegal funds. The police are stationed there to address issues such as unauthorized hawkers and beggars, and Goud falls into the same category. The exact details will be revealed through the ongoing inquiry, allowing both sides to present their accounts.”
Video Sparks Widespread Outage
This incident has sparked massive outage on the social media bringing widespread criticism to the police department. People have come forward in support of the artist who has been performing all over city and has gained significant fame through his art in recent times. On the other side, the police is being slammed over such behaviour despite being the protectors of the citizens.
