As predicted by ex-CM Devendra Fadnavis a few days ago, Maharashtra's Thackrey Government is going on a vendetta route. Under the instructions from the Home Ministry, Mumbai police detained North Mumbai BJP MP Gopal Shetty for demanding a clearance to unveil the life-size statue of Atal Bihari Vajpayee. In another case, Maharashtra Police has issued a notice to central cabinet minister Narayan Rane on Wednesday (December 29) to "appear before police at Kankavali Police Station" in Sindhudurg district. The police are searching for his son BJP MLA Nitesh Rane, who is said to be framed in a case by a political opponent.
BJP North Mumbai MP Gopal Shetty was detained late noon on Tuesday when he was going to meet the sports minister, Sunil Kedar, on whose insistence Maharashtra government and BMC stayed the permission to unveil the statue of Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The statue was installed in a space allotted by the government at Kandivali east in his constituency. It was supposed to be unveiled on December 25, the birth anniversary of Vajpayee. All the permissions were previously allotted, but the BMC and the state government retracted some permissions on the insistence of Sports Minister NCP leader Sunil Kedar and asked MP Gopal Shetty to submit some more papers. The government chose not to allow the statue's unveiling even after submitting the necessary papers.
Mumbai police detained Gopal Shetty when he was on his way to meet minister Sunil Kedar with a request letter to allow the statue's unveiling ceremony. He was taken to the Azad Maidan police station at late noon and was kept there till late evening.
In another case, Maharashtra Police issued a notice to central Minister Narayan Rane to appear before police at Kankavali police station in Sindhudurg district. The police are looking for BJP MLA Nitesh Rane, who is said to be framed by his political opponent. While Nitesh Rane has moved to a local court for anticipatory bail, Narayan Rane replied to the question by some television reporters that he would not tell the police the whereabouts of Nitesh even if he knows owing to the security issues.
Ex-minister Sudhirbhau Mungantiwar told Organiser that Maharashtra's MVA government has started to play with fire, and those who have started this dangerous game will have to face the consequences. He further added that the MVA government is showing utter ego and arrogance of power in its day-to-day conduct and is doing vendetta politics.
Leader of Opposition in Legislative Council Pravin Darekar criticised the Thackrey government for its vendetta politics and said he never saw such kind of vendetta politics in the state's history. He has supported Narayan Rane's stand and asked whether Maharashtra police will take responsibility of the security of BJP MLA Nitesh Rane.
