A Mumbai Court has acquitted five Shiv Sena workers in a 2005 rioting and unlawful assembly case related to a protest in Mumbai against the then Union minister Narayan Rane following his decision to exit the saffron party.
Additional Sessions Judge R N Rokade highlighted discrepancies in the identity of the individuals booked by the police and their alleged roles in the incident that occurred 18 years ago.
According to the police account, a group of Shiv Sainiks marched towards a meeting organized by supporters of Rane near the office of the party’s mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ in Prabhadevi, central Mumbai. The gathering intended to be addressed by former Shiv Sena chief minister of Maharashtra Rane after his departure from the regional party founded by Bal Thackeray.
A scuffle ensued between members of the rival groups, leading the police to employ lathicharge to control the situation. The investigating agency further stated that a policeman suffered a knee injury due to stone pelting between supporters of Rane and workers of the Uddhav Thackeray-led party.
A case under relevant sections of the IPC was registered against several Shiv Sena workers for unlawful assembly, rioting, and assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from the discharge of his duty.
Seven individuals were facing trial, and the case was abated against two of them following their demise. The acquitted Shiv Sena workers, identified as Ashok Kelkar, Laxman Bhosale, Ajit Kadam, Dattaram Shinde, and Shashi Phadate, were exonerated by Additional Sessions Judge R N Rokade.
While acquitting the five Sena workers, the court highlighted that the complainant (police) mentioned booking 8 to 0 people from the protest site, but there was no reference to them in the case. The court observed the absence of arrest memos or ‘panchnamas’ (documents recording evidence/findings at the scene of an offence) to identify the accused and clarify how these five individuals were involved.
Additionally, the judge noted discrepancies in their identification, their roles in the alleged offense, and the medical records failing to distinctly reveal how the injury to the policeman occurred.
Following his departure from Shiv Sena, Rane joined the Congress, became a state minister, and is currently associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as a member of the Rajya Sabha. In June 2022, the Shiv Sena underwent a split when a faction of MLAs revolted against the party’s leadership.
