A journalist was allegedly attacked by henchmen of Maharashtra MLA Kishor Patil, who belongs to CM Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena faction in Jalgaon district of Maharashtra, on Thursday, August 10.
Journalist Sandeep Mahajan, through his YouTube channel and newspaper called Dyay, had raised a minor’s rape case which happened a few days ago. The case involved the rape and assault of an eight-year-old by her 19-year-old neighbour.
According to Mahajan, local police and MLA Kishore Patil tried to hush up the case. Local Marathi channels reported a purported telephonic conversation between Patil and Mahajan, where the former threatened the latter over pursuing the case.
Responding to Mahajan’s accusations, Patil, during an interaction with reporters, defended himself, saying “he had not done anything wrong.”
As Mahajan continued to report on the case, on Thursday, while on his way to the office, he was assaulted by a few men. Although he tried to lodge a complaint, the police refused to file an FIR against Patil and his henchmen.
The Opposition parties have strongly condemned the attack. While Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi termed it ‘shameful’, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLA Rohit Pawar demanded FIR against Patil and immediate arrest.
