Mumbai: Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar Tuesday directed the state government to order the formation of an SIT to probe Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange-Patil’s allegations against Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.
Jarange-Patil had in a statement earlier this month alleged that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Fadnavis was “conspiring to eliminate me by poisoning me through saline”.
Narwekar called for a probe after BJP MLA Ashish Shelar demanded it on the floor of the House.
Leaders of the ruling coalition in Maharashtra have alleged that Manoj Jarange-Patil’s Maratha agitation for reservation in educational institutions and government jobs is being ‘funded by his political affiliates’ and that he delivered provocative statements during the campaign.
“Who is the mastermind behind the agitation? Who is responsible for the agitation going out of hand? Who brought in the stones for pelting? He meets which leader? Where does he stay? Which political party was he promoting? Everything needs to be investigated and an SIT needs to be formed,” said Shelar, the BJP MLA from Bandra West.
Reacting to Jarange-Patil’s allegations, Fadnavis said on the floor of the House: “I am not interested in speaking about Manoj Jarange-Patil but then abusing me in foul language, what is all this? Investigation needs to be done even in the Beed violence. Who started the war rooms in Sambhajinagar and Navi Mumbai? All this will be investigated. One thing is clear: this conspiracy will be revealed.”
He was referring to a protest in the Beed district which turned violent on 29 October last year, days after Jarange-Patil launched the second phase of his indefinite strike in Jalna.
CM Ekanth Shinde too delivered a sharp reaction to Jarange-Patil’s remarks against Fadnavis. “Manoj Jarange-Patil’s language is political. He abused me and even levelled serious allegations against the Deputy CM. This is not the language of any activist but of a political person and who is behind this, it needs to be investigated,” he said.
On his part, Jarange-Patil told the media Tuesday that he is ready to face any probe.
“I will also not keep quiet. I will reveal that you have been the one calling me every time and will reveal all we spoke about during those calls,” he said.
Citing the seriousness of Jarange-Patil’s claims, the Opposition has also demanded that his allegations be probed.
“Who wanted to be the hero in the entire Maratha reservation issue? All of us know that. So who gave Jarange-Patil a bigger space also needs to be investigated,” said the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Maharashtra Assembly Vijay Waddetiwar.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra police Tuesday registered a case against the Maratha quota activist under sections 341 (wrongful restraint), 143 (unlawful assembly), 145 (joining or continuing in an unlawful assembly), 149 (unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed to further common object), 188 (disobedience to order promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for allegedly instigating common people to block a road in Beed, causing heavy traffic jam and inconvenience to people.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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