IG CID to probe attacks on BJP workers in Pimpri-Chinchwad

Mumbai, Mar 15 (UNI) Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister R R Patil told the Legislative Assembly today that Inspector General of CID would probe into the attacks on two BJP activists in Pimpri-Chinchwad during the recent civic elections.

Replying to the debate in the Lower House on the law and order situation in the State, Mr Patil said two persons had been arrested in connection with two recent incidents where Ankush Landge was killed and Shashikant Shitole's hands were chopped off. The Deputy Chief Minister said no political interference will be tolerated in the probe.

''An atmosphere that the NCP was a party of goons was being created and its candidates from Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad and Nagpur were being talked about as alleged criminals, he said the read out the list of BJP candidates, several of them who he said were charged with murder.

He said only those who are strong are targeted. The continuous attacks against the NCP in the Legislature and outside shows that the party is growing politically, he said.

Rejecting the opposition's charge that the police was partial towards the NCP and were protecting its activists, he said ''Ninety-three cognizable and non-cognizable offenses were registered against the Congress and 79 against the NCP during the recent Zilla Parishad elections while 36 cases were filed against Shiv Sena and 28 against the BJP,'' he said adding that if the police were not impartial, they would have registered maximum cases against Shiv Sena-BJP.

Referring to the Tasgaon episode where an FIR for criminal intimidation of candidates was filed against him, Mr Patil said Shiv Sena candidate Panchakshar Jungam in Tasgaon had never met him nor had he asked the Sena activists to withdraw from the fray. ''When Jungam first filed the FIR against me, the local police did so and later informed me about it,'' he said and asked what more proof of impartiality of the police could there be other than the fact that they had registered an FIR against the Deputy Chief Minister.

Mr Patil told the House that Jungam and other BJP candidates had told the Tasgaon court today that he had never met me and I had not threatened him to withdraw his candidature.

Mr Patil said there are different legal opinions about whether the Election Commission had changed the schedule of polls after announcement. ''I was advised to move the court against the decision of the State Election Commission to postpone the Zilla Parishad elections on technical grounds. But, I chose not to do so, because it was better to face the law rather than be in suspicion of the public eye,'' he said.

UNI