BJP leaders seek FIR against Uddhav Thackeray for remarks against Yogi Adityanath, file complaint
This comes after Union minister Narayan Rane was arrested for remarks against Uddhav Thackeray. BJP leaders have also filed complaints against Rashmi Thackeray and Yuva Sena president Varun Sardesai. The police confirmed that complaints have been filed, seeking FIRs against the three leaders.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders on Wednesday filed complaints against Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, his wife and 'Saamana' editor Rashmi Thackeray and Yuva Sena president Varun Sardesai, seeking FIRs against them. This came a day after Union minister and BJP leader Narayan Rane was arrested in Maharashtra over controversial remarks against Thackeray.
All the three complaints have been filed in Nashik. The police confirmed that the BJP leaders submitted the three complaint applications, news agency PTI reported.
The first complaint has been given by Rishikesh Jayant Aher against Thackeray and Sardesai. It accused Sardesai of staging an "illegal demonstration" outside Rane's Mumbai residence on Wednesday, and claimed that CM Thackeray later felicitated him at his official residence Varsha, which sent a "wrong message". Aher cited the videos of the protest broadcast on television channels and social media.
He has demanded that Sardesai should be booked under sections 153(A), 107, 212 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the cyber crime laws.
The second complaint has been lodged by Sunil Raghunath Kedar against Thackeray, saying had allegedly passed derogatory remarks against Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath.
A video has emerged on social media from 2018, when Thackeray was not the chief minister, which shows the Shiv Sena chief as saying that Yogi should be "slapped with his chappal" for garlanding a photo of Shivaji wearing a footwear. The complainant said that Adityanath is not only the chief minister of UP and a BJP leader, but also the mahant of Gorakhpur Math and therefore the sentiments of many Hindus are attached to him.
The third complaint has been lodged by Shivaji Nivrutti Barke against Rashmi Thackeray. It says that in the editorial published in Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' on Wednesday, many abusive words were used against Rane, which was an "insult" of the constitutional post of Union minister that he holds.
Rane was arrested on Tuesday afternoon from Maharashtra's Ratnagiri district for remarks made during the 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra' in Raigad a day before. Rane claimed that Thackeray forgot the year of India's independence during his August 15 address and that he would have slapped the chief minister for it. His comments had set off protests by Shiv Sainiks in many cities of Maharashtra.
Rane was granted bail by a magistrate court late on Tuesday.