Form of words:
Mumbai: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday once again attacked the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government, the alliance of Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party and Congress on the law and order front. This time the reason was that former BJP MP Kirit Somaiya was stopped from going to Kolhapur.
Somaiya had created corruption allegations against state cabinet minister Hassan Mushrif claiming that he owned Anonymous property and business in the name of his family members at Kolhapur, and announced His intention to visit the city for a site tour. Mushrif, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLA from Kagal in Kolhapur, rubbished the allegations and said he plans to file Rs 100 crore. defamation case against somaiya
On Monday morning, Kolhapur district police detained Somaiya at Karad railway station and took him to the circuit house there. Addressing a press conference from Karad, Somaiya said, “The Thackeray government has created history today. Instead of taking action against those involved in scams, they have taken action against those who exposed the scams. I said that I want to file a complaint at Kolhapur Kagal police station. I informed the police and the district administration, but not only was I stopped from registering a complaint, but I was also barred from entering the district.”
However, speaking to reporters on Monday afternoon, NCP leader, State Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil said that the district administration feels Somaiya’s visit may create tension on the ground between the two parties (BJP and NCP). “The district administration informed the state home department about the situation and it was thought that some preventive action needed to be taken. The district administration drafted such orders and the police informed Somaiya,” Walse Patil said.
“When Somaiya insisted on leaving despite the notice, the police stopped Somaiya as per rules at the Kolhapur border. He was neither arrested nor detained. The police simply informed him and he was taken to the rest home. After his press conference, he was allowed to return to Mumbai,” the home minister said.
The Shiv Sena, however, distanced itself from the controversy with its Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut, telling reporters: “I spoke to the CM and he clearly said that the CM’s office has nothing to do with the entire action (against Somaiya). -Do not give. . The state home department felt that there could be a law and order issue from both the sides and hence this action was taken. The Chief Minister does not get involved in such petty matters.
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‘Fight legal battle with law, not Kolhapuri chappal’
Somaiya is known for filing Right to Information requests, holding press conferences and flashing documents publicly to level allegations of corruption against members of opposition parties and then filing complaints with central agencies. since last year, that’s also targeted This is how Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and his wife Rashmi Thackeray.
While Somaiya is seen as a lone warrior most of the time, since Monday’s incident, the entire BJP has rallied in support of the leader at the state level.
The BJP, which has often attacked the MVA government over law and order issues, slammed the state government over the incident, saying it was perhaps the first time that a person who wanted to expose corruption would face police action. Had to do
Speaking to reporters, opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis said: “This is probably the first time in independent India that a person says I am going to file a police complaint against corruption, and the police hold him back. We have never seen this in India, especially in Maharashtra. What is happening is scary, but BJP will not stop. We will continue our fight against corruption.”
BJP state president Chandrakant Patil said in the press conference, ‘Fight the legal battle with the law. Don’t fight it with Kolhapuri chappals. Showing Kolhapuri chappals is easy, facing the Enforcement Directorate is not that easy.”
Speaking to reporters, BJP MLA Ashish Shelar questioned that if people had a real fear of taking law into their own hands when they visited Somaiya, why did the district administration not take action against them? “What is Somaiya doing? He is going to Kolhapur to file a complaint. The complainants are caught and the goons are allowed to roam freely in the state,” he said.
BJP’s attack on Home Department
Since the formation of the MVA government, the one department the BJP has targeted the most is the Home Department, which is held by the NCP, but over which the chief minister’s office has traditionally held a significant amount of influence.
The first instance of BJP raising questions on law and order in the state was in Palghar. the killing The incident of April 2020, when three people including two sadhus were lynched to death by a mob. The party also targeted the law and order situation of the state. the inspection In the case of actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death, which was eventually transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
BJP also targeted the MVA government for allegedly targeting republic tv Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami by registering multiple cases against him or his network, including an investigation into the alleged misappropriation of television ratings points, and his arrest for his alleged role in the suicide of Anvay Naik, an interior designer.
The BJP’s relentless attacks on the state home department have also led to the resignations of two MVA ministers – Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Rathod and NCP’s Anil Deshmukh. Rathod, who held the Forest Department, In February this year, he became the first MVA minister to resign following the death of a TikTok star and allegations of violating COVID restrictions at a public gathering.
Deshmukh’s resignation as the state home minister in April this year came after one of the biggest controversies related to the MVA government. This included former Mumbai police chief Param Bir Singh making Forced ransom Charges against Deshmukh and policeman Sachin Vaze (now sacked) Arrested For allegedly planting explosives outside the house of industrialist Mukesh Ambani. Fadnavis had accessed confidential call data records to take on the MVA government in the Legislative Assembly.
The MVA has also faced the ire of the BJP for registering many cases Along with those criticizing the CM, state minister Aaditya Thackeray and the MVA government on social media in the recent past to arrest Union Minister Narayan Rane slammed CM for his remark of slapping
(Edited by Polomi Banerjee)
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