Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut. (Express file) The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena Friday alleged that the violence in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, earlier known as Aurangabad, on Wednesday was state-sponsored and that attempts are being made by the Maharashtra government to stop the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) from holding its rally in the city on April 2, Sunday.
Stones were pelted and several vehicles damaged when two groups clashed in Kiradpura area of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar on Wednesday following which one person succumbed to injuries on Thursday night. The police have lodged FIRs against around 500 people.
“We have information that no one from the two different groups wanted violence to take place… But the government wanted violence to take place. It supported those who resorted to violence. It did not act against those who resorted to violence. The city saw state-sponsored violence on Wednesday night,” alleged Shiv Sena (UBT) chief spokesperson Sanjay Raut.
Charred remains of a vehicle after a clash between two groups near a Ram temple in Aurangabad, Thursday, March 30, 2023. (PTI) “The government does not want the rally to take place. It wants to cite the reason of law and order and deny permission for holding the rally. This is all part of the government conspiracy..,” Raut said.
Attacking Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, he added, “The violence in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar raises the point as to whether the state Home Ministry exists or not. The Home Ministry failed to tackle the situation. Fadnavis is not what he used to be. He seems helpless and frustrated.”
Meanwhile, the violence in the city has triggered a verbal war. Former MP Chandrakant Khaire, who belongs to Uddhav Sena, said, “The peace in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar has been disturbed after Imtiaz Jaleel became the MP. When I was the MP, such things never happened.”
Reacting to the allegations, Jaleel said, “When something bad happens, they blame me. When development projects are implemented in the city, they never credit me… It is part of their politics.”