Panel which probed assault on cop by Maha MLAs submits report

Maharashtra government-appointed committee, which probed the assault on a traffic police officer by a group of legislators inside the assembly premises, submitted its report to Speaker.

Mumbai: A Maharashtra government-appointed committee, which probed the assault on a traffic police officer by a group of legislators inside the assembly premises here last month, on Tuesday submitted its report to the Speaker.

The committee, headed by Ganpatrao Deshmukh, a veteran MLA of Peasants and Workers Party (PWP), comprised the entire panel of presiding officers belonging to different parties.

The seven-member panel submitted its report to Assembly Speaker Dilip Walse Patil, sources said adding its content could not be ascertained.

As part of the inquiry, the committee recorded the statements of Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Suryavanshi, who was assaulted, all five legislators allegedly involved in the incident, doctors who treated the injured cop, police and assembly staff.

Two of the five legislators - Kshitij Thakur (Bahujan Vikas Agadhi) and Ram Kadam (MNS) - were arrested in connection with the incident and later released on bail by a local court.

Suryavanshi, attached to the Worli police station, was beaten black and blue by the MLAs outside the visitor`s gallery at the legislature complex on March 19, a day after he had stopped Thakur`s vehicle on Bandra-Worli Sea Link for speeding and slapped a fine.

Though the legislator paid the fine, there was an altercation between the two when the MLA sought to know the sections of traffic rules under which he was booked.

All five MLAs were suspended from Assembly for the rest of the year and barred from entering the Vidhan Bhavan premises in Mumbai and Nagpur (where winter session is held).

Besides Thakur and Kadam, the other MLAs allegedly involved in the attack were Jaykumar Rawal (BJP), Rajan Salvi (Shiv Sena) and Pradeep Jaiswal (Independent).

PTI

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