CM orders probe into ‘social boycott’ of Sindhudurg couple

MUMBAI: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday ordered a probe against alleged social boycott of a Sindhudurg couple who protested outside Mantralaya the previous

MUMBAI: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday ordered a probe against alleged social boycott of a Sindhudurg couple who protested outside Mantralaya the previous night. The couple said their fellow villagers were boycotting them over certain traditions.

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The CM even invited the couple, who are from a Kudal village in Sindhudurg district, to his official residence, Varsha, and performed aarti with them.

However, Fadnavis may be in a spot of bother as the husband, Parmanand Hevalekar, is an accused in a molestation case, which may have prompted the social boycott of his family, sources said. Minister of state for home Deepak Kesarkar confirmed the criminal case against Hevalekar.

“It is true that he is accused of molesting a woman but we won’t be able to say whether this was the actual reason behind social boycott,” the minister said.

The Kudal police had even filed a charge sheet in the case, sources said. The case against him was registered in 2013. It will now be probed whether the social boycott was an outcome of a feud, he said. The couple staged a dharna with a Ganesh idol at the main gate of the Mantralaya building. The couple was insisting on a meeting Fadnavis alleging that they were driven out from the village and was also beaten up.

A journalist spotted the couple who apprised Kesarkar of the situation, after which the minister of state and DCP Manoj Kumar Sharma reached at the spot and assured justice to them.

When the incident reached to the CM, he ordered an investigation asked district collector to ensure that the couple be allowed to enter the village.