Ink thrown at Maharashtra minister Chandrakant Patil over remark about Ambedkar, Mahatma Phule
Pune, Dec 10: Ink was thrown at Maharashtra Minister and BJP leader Chandrakant Patil in Pimpri city near here on Saturday in apparent protest against his controversial remark about Dr B R Ambedkar and social reformer Mahatma Jyotiba Phule.
The police detained the man who threw ink on Patil and further investigation was underway, Pimpri-Chinchwad police commissioner Ankush Shinde said.
Commenting on the incident, deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said Patil's statement was misunderstood by people.
A video of the incident showed a man throwing ink at the senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader as he emerged out of a building. Security personnel around the minister immediately caught hold of the man.
Before the incident of ink throwing, some protesters also tried to show black flags to the minister's convoy in Pimpri.
Speaking in Marathi at an event in Aurangabad on Friday, Patil, who is the Higher and Technical Education Minister, had said that Ambedkar and Phule did not seek government grants for educational institutions, they "begged" to people to gather funds for starting schools and colleges.
The use of the word "begged" stirred up a controversy.
Speaking in Nagpur, Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the incident in Pimpri was very unfortunate, and Patil's statement had been misunderstood.
Even if Patil used the wrong word, one should try to understand what he meant, Fadnavis told reporters.
All he was trying to convey was that people such as Dr Ambedkar or educationist Bhaurao Patil did not take money from the government to run educational institutes, the BJP leader said.
Ink thrown on BJP leader and Minister Chandrakant Patil after he made statement on Bharat Ratna #BabasahebAmbedkar in Pimpri Chinchwad,Pune pic.twitter.com/rEChunDgOF
— Pramod Sharma (प्रमोद शर्मा) (@ipramodsharma) December 10, 2022
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NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani rejoins Town Hall after ABC reinstates Jimmy Kimmel
New York: New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani said Monday evening that he is once again willing to participate in a local town hall hosted by ABC’s New York affiliate, after the network announced it would reinstate late-night host Jimmy Kimmel.
Earlier in the day, Mamdani, the Democratic nominee, had pulled out of the WABC-TV event to protest ABC’s suspension of Kimmel. “Last week, Disney/ABC caved to Trump administration pressure. Millions of Americans helped them find their backbone. Whether you watch Jimmy Kimmel or not, today’s decision is a victory for free speech,” Mamdani wrote on X.
ABC suspended Kimmel last week following backlash over his comments on the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Nexstar and Sinclair stations had said they would refuse to air Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr threatened consequences if the network failed to act. Former President Donald Trump, who praised Kirk as a “great American hero,” applauded the suspension.
Kimmel’s remarks on his show had criticized those he said were seeking to “capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk.” The host has not issued a public statement since the controversy.
The suspension triggered an outcry over free speech, with more than 430 entertainment industry figures joining an ACLU-led letter denouncing the move as “a dark moment for freedom of speech in our nation.”
Mamdani, 33, had originally framed his withdrawal as a protest against corporate leadership, not local journalists, accusing Disney/ABC of “putting their bottom line ahead of their responsibility in upholding the freedom of the press.” After the reversal, he said his campaign was working with WABC to reschedule.
Mamdani will face former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, and Republican Curtis Sliwa in the city’s November election.
