PIL in HC seeking cases against Raj Thackeray, Ajit Pawar

Mumbai, March 8: A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed in the Bombay HighCcourt on Friday seeking direction to lodge cases against deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and MNS chief Raj Thackeray for instigating their party workers to engage in rioting and recovering cost for damage to public property last month.

The PIL filed by Hemant Patil, president of Rashtriya Brashtachar Virodhi Janshakti, has sought court's direction to Maharashtra government and state's police chief to register cases against Pawar and Thackeray whose public criticism of each other had triggered violence.

The two leaders had been recently taking potshots at each other from public platforms which had outraged their workers who engaged in rioting in several parts of the state.

"In various districts across the state, party workers of MNS and NCP have been indulging in violent activities and disturbing peace and harmony of the society. The MNS chief has used vulgar and abusive words against various other political leaders like Sushilkumar Shinde and Sharad Pawar," the petition said.

The petition will come up for hearing in due course of time.

Pawar, nephew of NCP boss Sharad Pawar, had recently attacked Thackeray for mimicking political leaders during a visit to Kolhapur, saying it would only "entertain" people and not solve state's problems like drought.

Thackeray retaliated by accusing Pawar, who headed the water resources ministry between 1999 and 2009, of being responsible for water scarcity despite huge spendings on irrigation projects.

There have been allegations of a Rs. 70,000 crore scam in the irrigation department, which has been with NCP since inception of Congress-NCP government in Maharashtra in 1999.

Furious over Thackeray's accusation against their leader, NCP workers had hurled stones at MNS leader's convoy at Bhingar in Ahmednagar district on February 26, triggering a spate of incidents of violence and arson in Mumbai, Pune and Thane.

PTI