Eknath Khadse
Social activist and former Aam Aadmi Party leader Anjali Damania Wednesday demanded arrest of former BJP minister Eknath Khadse, accusing him of making an “obscene remark” against her at a public rally in Jalgaon, North Maharashtra. She has also moved the Maharashtra State Women’s Commission and approached the Jalgaon police with a complaint against Khadse over the alleged obscene remarks that she said undermined the modesty of a woman. Seeking Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s intervention, Damania demanded Khadse’s arrest under Section 354 (assault or criminal force to women with intent to outrage her modesty) of the IPC. Khadse, however, denied the charge and said he did not say anything obscene.
Damania had recently filed a PIL against Khadse and his family accusing them of amassing assets disproportionate to their known sources of income.
Speaking to the media at the BJP headquarters in Mumbai, Khadse responded to Damania’s charge of disproportionate assets against him. He said: “My only source of income is farming. In the first four to five years, I got no income from the mango orchids. But in the sixth and seventh years, we reaped bigger and better mango harvest.”
An unfazed Khadse continued: “Why should Damania feel the attack was directed at her. There can be thousands of Damanias and Khadses. Did I even once mention Anjali?”
The BJP leader has been at loggerheads with Damania for the last three years. Hearing the PIL filed by Damania, the Bombay High Court asked the state government a few days ago to furnish details in three weeks on what action it had taken against Khadse and his family.
Alleging conspiracy, Khadse said:“I throw an open challenge to anybody to unearth the undeclared assets. If you find out, I will donate it to a ‘Brahmin’. I urge one and all to get to the job of unearthing my assets within 15 days, which also coincides with ‘pitrupaksha’, a good time for making donations.” He was however quick to add that he would donate the assets to a “Brahmin at Trimbakeshwar pilgrimage centre in Nashik”.
He added: “I have not done anything wrong. And even I am trying to find out the forces working against me.”
Even though he refrained from making any direct attack against any BJP leader, Khadse’s taunts and teasers have raised many eyebrows with the sarcasm being seen in the BJP as a veiled attack against Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
“Khadse should have exercised caution when speaking. There was no need to repeatedly mention donation to a ‘Brahmin’. Why is raking caste politics? Secondly, Damania had filed a PIL against his family’s disproportionate assets. Khadse should have confined his battle to court. His sarcastic comments and example of mangoes do not speak well in a civil society,” said a BJP functionary who did not wish to be named.
Though senior ministers distanced themselves from Khadse’s remarks, BJP’s political managers said since all cases against Khadse were pending in court, taking the matter to the public did not auger well for the leader’s image or that of the BJP.
Earlier, Damania said, “I have written to the chief minister and the women’s commission over Khadse’s obscene comment against me. I want the police to file an FIR and arrest Khadse.”
Acknowledging that he responded to Damania’s charges of disproportionate assets by giving examples of horticulture and floriculture, Khadse said: “In my 40 years of political career, I have never insulted any woman. Moreover, my daughters and daughter-in-law were also on the dais at the Jalgaon function.”
Jalgaon District Superintendent of Police Dattatreya Karale said the police would record statements of the people concerned.
