FIR against Dhananjay Munde for remarks on cousin Pankaja Munde
Beed: An FIR has been lodged against NCP leader Dhananjay Munde for allegedly making obscene comments against his estranged cousin and Maharashtra minister Pankaja Munde at an election rally, a police official said on Sunday.
The NCP leader, however, said the clip was edited and fake, and his remarks were "distorted" to project him as a "villain" by his rivals to win elections.
A video purportedly showing the NCP leader making the remarks against the minister went viral on social media, following which a BJP functionary from Parli in Beed district filed a police complaint against him on Saturday, he said.
Both the cousins are locked in a battle from Parli segment for Monday's state Assembly polls. Pankaja Munde, the sitting BJP MLA from Parli, is the daughter of late party veteran Gopinath Munde.
"Acting on the complaint filed by Parli BJP president Jugal Kishor Lohiya, the FIR was lodged late Saturday night against Dhananjay Munde under Indian Penal Code Sections 500 (defamation), 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult modesty of a woman) and 294 (obscene act in public place)," Parli police station in-charge Purushottam Chobe told PTI.
Lohiya in his complaint said the NCP leader allegedly made the obscene remarks against the BJP minister at a public meeting held at Vida village in Kej tehsil on October 17.
The BJP has also complained to the Election Commission and the women's commission against the NCP leader's remarks. Some BJP workers also burnt his effigy at Shirur-Kasar tehsil here on Saturday night.
However, Dhananjay Munde said the clip was being circulated on social media by "distorting" his comments to "deliberately" defame him and project him as a "villain".
"My speech at Vida has been tampered with. This is clearly an attempt (by rivals) to make me a villain and win the elections," he said at a press conference here on Sunday.
"I have succeeded in politics on my own. I sacrificed Parli constituency for Pankaja Munde (apparently referring to 2009 when Gopinath Munde fielded his daughter)," he said.
The NCP leader pointed out that he spoke at Vida last Thursday and the clip went viral on Saturday.
"The complainant has not submitted any CD of my speech and neither the police verified it. We also tried to complain over this controversy, but the police didn't entertain it. But my speech in Vida is tampered and people who recently entered the BJP have made this attempt," he alleged.
"I have not taken the name of my sister, I have never used words which will hamper the brother-sister relationship.
This is an attempt to finish my political career. Our family has more number of female members...I will never make such comments which are below the dignity of women," he asserted.
Earlier in a statement on Facebook late Saturday night, he demanded that the authenticity of the "edited" clip be tested in a forensic laboratory.
Those who have "edited" the clip should at least respect the holy relationship of brother and sister, the leader of opposition in the state Legislative Council said.
The NCP leader said he is contesting the election only on the issue of development, and asked his detractors not to stoop low by giving an emotional twist to it.
"It is an edited clip, distorts my statement and deliberately defames me. The clip is completely fake and its authenticity must be tested in forensic lab."
He alleged that an emotional twist was being given to the election in the constituency as he has been receiving huge response from the people, causing fear of defeat in the minds of his rivals.
He also said he did not use bad words about any of his rivals, despite him being labelled as "monster".
"I did principle-based politics yesterday and doing it today. I have done 'kanyadaan' of my 1,500 sisters (girls). I will never use wrong words about any woman. Hence, workers and citizens should not believe in rumours," he added.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Strict security measures in place in Mumbai for Messi's events at 2 venues Dec 14, say police
Mumbai (PTI): In view of Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai on Sunday, the city police are implementing stringent security measures, like not allowing water bottles, metals, coins inside the stadiums and setting up watchtowers to keep an eye on the crowd, officials said.
The police also said taking extra care to avoid any stampede-like situation and to prevent recurrence of the chaotic situation that unfolded in Kolkata during Messi's visit on Saturday as thousands of fans protested inside the Salt Lake stadium here after failing to catch a clear glimpse of the football icon despite paying hefty sums for tickets.
Messi is expected to be present at the Cricket Club of India (Brabourne Stadium) in Mumbai on Sunday for a Padel GOAT Cup event followed by attending a celebrity football match. He is expected to proceed to the Wankhede Stadium for the GOAT India Tour main event around 5 pm.
"In view of Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai, the police are geared up and have put in place a high level of security arrangements in and around the stadiums located in south Mumbai. Considering the chaos that prevailed in Kolkata and the security breach, we have deployed World Cup-level security arrangements at Brabourne and Wankhede stadiums," an official said.
Expecting heavy crowd near the stadiums during Messi's visit, the city police force has deployed more than 2,000 of its personnel near and around both the venues, he said.
As the Mumbai police have the experience of security 'bandobast' during the victory parade of ICC World Cup-winning Indian team and World Cup final match at the Wankhede Stadium, in which over one lakh cricket fans had gathered, we are prepared to handle a large crowd of fans, he said.
"We are trying to avoid the errors that occurred in the past," the official said.
There is no place to sneak inside the stadiums in Mumbai like the Kolkata stadium, according to him.
The police are also asking the organisers to provide all the required facilities to the fans inside the stadium, so that there will be no chaos, he said, adding the spectators have purchased tickets in the range of Rs 5,000 to 25,000. After paying so much of amount, any spectator expects proper services, while enjoying the event, he said.
The police are expecting 33,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium and over 4,000 at Brabourne Stadium. Besides this, more than 30,000 people are expected outside and around the stadiums just to have a glimpse of the football sensation, he said.
The organisers responsible for Messi's India visit recently came to Mumbai to discuss security arrangements. During the meeting, the Mumbai police asked them not to take the event lightly, according to the official.
After those requirements were fulfilled, the final security deployment was chalked out, he said.
Police has the standard procedure of the security arrangements inside the Wankhede Stadium, where people are barred from taking water bottles, metals objects, coins. Police are setting up watch towers near the stadiums and there will be traffic diversions, so that there is maximum space available to stand, according to the official.
Police are also appealing to the spectators to use public transport service for commuting and avoid personal vehicles to reach south Mumbai.
To avoid any stampede-like situation, police are also taking precautionary measures and will stop the fans some distance ahead of the stadium and public announcement systems will be used to guide the crowd. Barricades will be placed at various places to manage the crowd.
In case the crowd swells up beyond expectation, the police will divert people to other grounds and preparations in this regard underway, he said.
Additional police force has been deployed in south Mumbai to tackle any kind of situation, he said.
