Will fast­-track Nashik case:CM

MUMBAI : Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday assured strict action against a 15-yearold who allegedly assaulted a five-year-old girl at Talegaon in Trimbakeshwar

MUMBAI : Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday assured strict action against a 15-yearold who allegedly assaulted a five-year-old girl at Talegaon in Trimbakeshwar on Saturday, even as he urged protesters to maintain calm in Nashik.

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As reports of the incident emerged, the CM spoke to top police officers from Nashik and asked guardian minister Nashik Girish Mahajan to visit the village.

Taking note of the attempts by some groups to escalate the issue by linking it to the community of the accused and the survivor, senior officials were told to handle the situation sensitively.

“Mahajan visited the girl and met her family. The accused has been arrested. We will try the case in a fast-track court to ensure strictest punishment to the accused. Some people are trying to spread rumours. We urge citizens not to fall prey to such attempts that may endanger law and order in the state. The government and police are doing their job,” Fadnavis said.

Mahajan met the protesters too, who were initially irked by his remark that it was “an attempt to rape, not rape”, thinking the government was trying to play down the incident.

Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar urged people to maintain law and order.

“One can understand the anger of citizens after the heinous crime. The protests should end after police action. People should refrain from resorting to violence, keeping in mind the culture of the progressive state,” he said.

The government has been unnerved by Maratha protests in the wake of rape and murder of a minor in Kopardi in Ahmednagar.

“Any case of rape cannot be linked to any community or religion,” said Mansingh Pawar of Sakal Maratha Samaj.