Pune: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) deputy leader in the Lok Sabha, Gopinath Munde, on Monday criticised the Pune police for their failure in cracking the murder of anti-superstition activist Dr Narendra Dabholkar and demanded that the case be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Addressing mediapersons, Munde claimed that the case would not be solved as long as police chief Gulabrao Pol is in the saddle. “Even after two weeks of Dabholkar’s murder, the Pune police are yet to find any clues. It is high time that the case be handed over to the CBI,” he said, adding, the state government has failed to send efficient police officers to big cities like Pune.
Coming down heavily on the government for the deteriorating law and order in the state, Munde said that deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar was doing nothing in this regard. He alleged that the government was not keen to act against criminals, which is why the state is witnessing a spurt in crimes.
The BJP leader alleged that the government was targeting Hindu organisations to appease the minorities and said that he would support the stand taken by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, who has extended support to these organisations.
Regarding the anti-superstition bill, Munde said that his party was objecting to a section of the bill and would support it if the objectionable part is removed.
Munde claimed that although his nephew Dhananjay Munde won the legislative council election, BJP was able to make a dent in the NCP-Congress vote bank. He said that he was ready to contest the assembly elections from Beed against anybody including Dhananjay or Ajit Pawar.
BJP to highlight govt’s insensitivity towards farmers
The fate of farmers in Vidarbha and Konkan after the crop damage due to heavy rains and price rise will be high on the agenda at the two-day state executive of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that will be held at Balewadi sports complex from Tuesday.
State unit spokesperson Madhav Bhandari said that party’s national president Rajnath Singh would inaugurate the meeting while former president Nitin Gadkari would address the concluding session on Wednesday.
Bhandari said that the government is insensitive towards the problems of farmers in Vidarbha and Konkan. He pointed out that many areas in the eight districts of Marathwada and Western Maharashtra region face severe drought and require water supply through tankers immediately after the Ganesh festival.
Party opposes ban on onion export
Bhandari said that BJP was against the ban on export of onions since the current crisis in onion prices was due to inaction on the part of government against the hoarding of onions by a few brokers and middlemen. He said that last week farmers had received price of Rs3,200 per quintal but consumers had to pay Rs70 per kg which shows that middlemen are making profit.
BJP questions delay in passing anti-superstition bill
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday questioned why the Democratic Front (DF) government did not pass the anti-superstition bill despite it being in power for the past 14 years.
Party spokesperson Madhav Bhandari pointed out that it was the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance government which passed the bill in the Legislative Council in 1997. He, however, regretted that the NCP-Congress government failed to bring the bill for voting in any of the Houses despite being in majority. “It was only because the NCP-Congress did not want to pass this bill,” he said, adding, the government passed 22 other legislations on the basis of sheer majority in the state assembly.
Bhandari said that the government has failed miserably in solving the Narendra Dabholkar case even after a fortnight of his gruesome murder. Replying to a question whether Hindu organisations were being targeted after Dabholkar’s murder, he said that the truth will come out once the probe are complete. He, however, said that the statements in this regard by those in power are enough to indicate that the issue has been politicised.
He alleged that the government has no control over the increasing crime rate in the state.
DNA
