Mumbai: Senior Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut today slammed the BJP government headed by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who holds Home portfolio, over the alleged murder of a traffic police constable while discharging his duty.
“Had the Home portfolio been with the Shiv Sena, we would have instilled fear in the minds of the goons. The Home ministry ought to have been entrusted with an independent minister,” Raut said.
Traffic cop Vilas Shinde (50) succumbed to his injuries yesterday, days after he was hit on head with a wooden plank allegedly by a juvenile after he asked the latter for vehicle documents at a petrol pump in suburban Khar last week.
“To instill fear in the minds of the goons a law on the paper is not enough or a chair in Mantralaya is not enough. What is equally important is who occupies that chair.
If Shiv Sena had the Home portfolio then we could have handled these goons differently. The incidents of attacks on police have increased.
“The CM is competent enough. We respect him. But you need a person who works in Home portfolio for 24 hours. The attacks on policemen do not augur well for Maharashtra,” the Rajya Sabha MP said.
Raut said the morale of the police personnel gets affected due to such incidents.
“The day it (morale) goes down even further, that day the power of goons and terrorists will increase. What is the reaction on social media after demise of Vilas Shinde: Balasaheb (late Sena chief Bal Thackeray) we miss you,” he said.
Meanwhile, MNS president Raj Thackeray said that if police personnel who are responsible for security of people are themselves unsafe, then one can very well guess the state of law and order in state.
“People migrating from other states are responsible for disturbing peace in Mumbai. They have no fear of law and those in power are bowing before them for votes. This has to stop,” he said.
The Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council, Dhananjay Munde said goons were getting emboldened to attack the police as government has “no control over law and order”.