| MUMBAI: The Maharashtra legislative assembly witnessed unprecedented ugly scenes on Tuesday when a group of legislators roughed up a traffic policeman during a breach of privilege hearing, prompting a strong response from the police brass. The situation eased following an apology from the speaker and after the chief minister and the home minister promised action against the offenders. A first information report was registered by the Marine Drive police against at least 15 legislators, including Nalasopara MLA Kshitij Thakur and the MNS's Ram Kadam, whom the injured policeman had named. Earlier in the day, over a dozen MLAs led by Thakur and Kadam thrashed sub-inspector of Worli traffic police, Sachin Suryavanshi, in the corridor outside the lower House after a heated hearing on the breach of privilege motion. The policeman was dragged out from the visitors' gallery where he was seated and kicked and punched till security officials rescued him. He was rushed to hospital. Suryavanshi has suffered blunt trauma in his chest, neck and abdomen, but is stable. Soon after the incident, almost all senior IPS officials protested before the CM, his deputy and the home minister. "We have related the entire incident in detail and have expressed our displeasure to the chief minister and home minister," said city police commissioner Satyapal Singh. The case has been transferred to the Mumbai crime branch and joint CP Himanshu Roy has been asked to head the probe. Sections 353 (assaulting public servant), 506(2) (criminal intimidation), 341 (wrongful restraint), 145 (unlawful assembly) and 146 and 147 (rioting) of the IPC, have been mentioned in the FIR. Describing the attack on Suryavanshi as "reprehensible", Chavan said: "Differences persist in democracy. But the aggrieved party can't take the law into its hands... You will know the action taken against the legislators within 24 hours." Sub-inspector Suryavanshi, who had joined the Worli traffic division recently, was accused of misbehaving with Thakur aft er stopping the latter's speeding vehicle on the Bandra-Worli Sea Link last week. Thakur, an MLA from the Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA), on Tuesday moved the breach of privilege motion against the cop, narrating the incident and claiming that Suryavanshi had refused to divulge details of sections imposed on his speeding car and later threatened him with "dire consequences". As the motion was being read out, several MLAs stormed into the well of the House demanding immediate action. The House was adjourned, but the exchange of emotive gestures between the legislators and the cop continued until it reached a flashpoint. Angry MLAs stepped out and beat up the haples cop in the corridor for almost 10 minutes. As tempers flared both among the police and the politicians, speaker Dilip Walse Patil told the House that both the incidents inside and outside the assembly premise were of a serious nature and needed to be probed deeply. "I am disturbed. I seek forgiveness from the peo ple of the state, the police and the MLAs. We are the custodians...," he said. Leader of the opposition Eknath Khadse of the BJP later visited the injured policeman. "If any of my party members are involved in this, I will not allow them to get away with this," he said. MNS legislator and leader of the party in the assembly Bala Nandgaonkar, too, criticized his party members for their role in the assault but stopped short of condoning the episode. Suryavanshi was visiting the assembly after he was apparently called by the chairman of the council for a hearing as the matter had rocked the upper House a day earlier. Following the pandemonium, Patil had announced the officer would be sent on forced leave until an inquiry is complete. During this period, Thakur had taken a letter signed by 25 MLAs to the spea ker demanding action. "When I bumped into the cop in the assembly corridor, he again threatened me and said 'do what you and your MLAs have to do against me'," Thakur told the assembly.  via Top Stories - Google News http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNEm8impmwVs5ZfEpcp_5Rjs46tfQA&url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Black-day-in-Maharashtra-MLAs-thrash-cop-in-assembly/articleshow/19082034.cms | |||
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