Mumbai activist Anjali Damania asks RSS chief to take stand on BJP leader’s vulgar remarks

Activist demands to know what the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh thinks about former Maharashtra minister Eknath Khadse’s comments; says police have not filed chargesheet

Social activist Anjali Damania has appealed to Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat to disclose his stand on the vulgar slurs allegedly made against her by former BJP minister from Maharashtra Eknath Khadse.

Anjali Damania (centre) and other activists demanding the resignation of BJP leader Eknath Khadse who was then Maharashtra’s revenue minister. (HT File)

The Mumbai-based activist is upset that despite having filed a First Information Report (FIR) at Mumbai’s Vakola police station against Khadse one month ago, the police have not yet filed a chargesheet. She said the RSS, the parent body of the BJP, should exercise its authority.

The Vakola police have registered an FIR against Khadse under section 509 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for outraging a woman’s modesty.

In a letter to Bhagwat, Damania said her father Sharaschandra Tillu was an active Sangh member, and it was disappointing that it did not express its opinion on such vulgar slurs. “My father was a dedicated RSS activist, and I want to know what the RSS, which was a principled organisation at that time, has to say about this unfortunate incident,” Damania said.

The incident is said to have taken place at a public function on the occasion of Khadse’s birthday in Muktainagar, Jalgaon, on September 2. The video shows that while responding to her comments on him amassing so much wealth, Khadse made some gender-specific derogatory comments, drawing analogy to mangoes in his farm. The former BJP minister, however, has refuted the allegation that he made any reference to Damania while speaking at the function.

Damania has also complained recently that she received a threatening call, where she was ordered to withdraw the cases she has filed against Khadse. She said the caller said that he knows that she has family. The number was listed under the name of Dawood 2 in the caller identification app, Truecaller, and originated from Karachi, Pakistan, she said.

The fight between Damania and Khadse has its roots in the activist’s allegations of disproportionate assets against the BJP leader. She has filed a public interest litigation in the matter in Bombay High Court. Khadse, who was second in command in the Devendra Fadnavis government, was forced to resign in June 2016 following a volley of allegations made against him.