New Delhi: Newly elected Minister of State in the Ministry of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries Sanjeev Balyan attracted controversy name over his alleged involvement in the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots. The 46-year-old lawmaker hails from Kutbi village in Muzaffarnagar district. He was part of a mahapanchayat there in September 2013, which appeared to have inflamed tensions.

Balyan has denied his involvement in the riots and has claimed that he has been booked in a false case. He was administered oath as minister of state by President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan Thursday. A BJP member, he was elected to the Lok Sabha in 2014 from the Muzaffarnagar constituency after trouncing BSP's Kadir Rana by a margin of more than four lakh votes.