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Thane civic chief’s remarks on social media group lead to uproar in House
Thane municipal commissioner Sanjeev Jaiswal allegedly made derogatory remarks against civic officials on their common WhatsApp group on Monday, leading to an uproar
Thane municipal commissioner Sanjeev Jaiswal allegedly made derogatory remarks against civic officials on their common WhatsApp group on Monday, leading to an uproar in the general body meeting of the House and demand for action against him on Thursday.
In the messages, Jaiswal allegedly called some Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) officials “back-stabbers”, “without a backbone” and “political pimps” and reportedly made a derogatory comment against women. HT has screenshots of the exchange on the group. Jaiswal, who claimed he was in Dubai, stated he was “misquoted” and he “did not name any officer or make a public statement”.
The drama began last week when Jaiswal announced inter-departmental transfers, which enraged some officials. The order was stayed after political intervention. Municipal secretary and deputy municipal commissioner Ashok Burpulle, who handled the solid waste department, was transferred to the Thane Municipal Transport. The move led to a series of arguments between Jaiswal and Burpulle. Enraged, the commissioner allegedly claimed that inter-departmental transfers come under him and expressed his ire on the WhatsApp group.
The messages went viral, after which the issue was raised by Sena corporator Sanjay Bhoir, who demanded to know the content of the messages that were reported in some sections of the regional media. Bhoir said, “We want to know what the message said. If he has said something against women, we will have to take appropriate action.”
As most officials refused to read them out, mayor Naresh Mhaske asked Burpulle to give a gist of these messages.
Burpulle said, “The messages have called some of the officials back-stabbers, bastards and pimps of the politicians. It also claimed the officials lack backbone and made derogatory comments against their wives and daughters.”
This enraged women corporators. Mrunal Pandse, BJP corporator, said, “We will not tolerate such language against women.”
Mayor Naresh Mhaske then adjourned the meeting. When it resumed, former mayor Meenakshi Shinde said, “These officers have supported the commissioner in the past whenever he staged a walkout. Now that he has targetted them, why don’t they register a case?”
Burpulle said he was ready to file a case. “I will take legal advice from my lawyers and register a case. I will call my mother from Latur and take her along to register the case, as he has insulted her.”
