Maharashtra ruling, Opposition MLAs almost come to blows

The Shiv Sena (Shinde)-BJP and Nationalist Congress Party legislators almost came to blows within the Assembly premises on Wednesday.

The trouble started in the morning when the BJP and Shinde camp MLAs began shouting slogans against NCP Chief Sharad Pawar and Shiv Sena President Uddhav Thackeray at the steps leading into the Assembly. This was in response to the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) leaders sloganeering earlier alleging Eknath Shinde camp MLAs had joined the BJP after taking in '50 cr.

Trouble arose when both groups of legislators came face to face shouting slogans, which soon turned physical. Shinde camp MLA Mahesh Shinde and NCP MLC Amol Mitkari were soon jostling with each other as other legislatures too turned aggressive. Desperate Marshals and senior MLAs from both the parties intervened to restrain their colleagues and physically separate the two groups.

Following the tussle, the NCP MLAs met Chief Minister Eknath Shinde claiming that they were threatened and abused by Mahesh Shinde during the clash.

"We have never seen such a situation in the Assembly before; they (Shinde camp) have deliberately done this. It shows that our slogans which have become popular have really hurt them."said Opposition leader Ajit Pawar after the clash.

Bharat Gogawale, the Shinde camp chief whip, said: "We didn't react to their slogans, but when we protested they created a ruckus and we had to act."