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'Aag na lagaaye': Maha CM Uddhav Thackeray warns against communalising Palghar Mob Lynching, promises swift justice

Home Minister of the state Anil Deshmukh took to Twitter earlier to inform that the attackers and the victims did not actually belong to two separate religions

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Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday responded to Union Home Minister Amit Shah's inquiry regarding the contentious Palghar Mob Lynching case in the state. According to reports, Thackeray assured the Home Minister that the state government is taking appropriate action pertaining to the case.

The Chief Minister of Maharashtra and Shiv Sena supremo took to addressing the state live from his official Facebook address on Monday. In his address, Uddhav Thackeray said that the lynching incident was extremely unfortunate and elaborated on the details behind the killings, as has been uncovered by the officials till now.

For context, an angry mob, armed with axes and sticks, at the Palghar village in Maharashtra on Sunday had lynched to death three persons, including two sadhus, under suspicion of them being thieves. The victims were travelling from Mumbai's Kandivali towards Surat in Gujarat in a Ford EcoSport car to attend a funeral on Thursday night. 

The cops have said that the accused in the mob are all local Adivasis from the Vikramgad Taluka and the Gadchnchale village in the Dahanu Taluka in the district.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on this day said that the sadhus were stopped and were sent back by the officials at the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli. "They then risked taking the remote route via the village where there had been a floating rumour about thieves for some time. The entire incident happened and the lives were lost because of a misunderstanding," he explained.

Notably, the vehicle that the individuals were travelling in was stopped by a mob, consisting mostly of 70-80 local villagers, in the Palghar district and the trio was lynched under suspicion that they were thieves and kidnappers. The villagers also attacked the police personnel when they tried to stop the rampaging mob and some policemen also sustained injuries in the incident.

"We are not keeping silent. We have taken action within hours. The police were attacked too. Yet we did a combing operation for the entire night and arrested more than 100 persons in connection with the lynching incident. We will not spare anyone. The CID is looking into the case," Thackeray said live on Facebook.

It is to be noted that the Palghar Police have arrested as many as 110 persons, including nine juveniles, in connection with the lynching incident. While 101 people have been remanded in police custody till April 30, the nine minors have been sent to a juvenile home in the state. The police said that further investigation is being conducted into the matter.

 

 

However, the incident is rapidly growing controversial and attaining a communal colour, especially as leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have pointed out that the victims of the lynching incident were wearing saffron robes.

Even the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), while delivering a statement on the Palghar Lynching incident, questioned the police's role in the matter.

However, the Maharashtra state government has warned against insinuating communal tensions via this incident. Home Minister of the state Anil Deshmukh took to Twitter to inform that the attackers and the victims did not actually belong to two separate religions, thereby debunking floating rumours on social media which were communalising the situation. Taking a strict stance against these rumours, Deshmukh said that the Maharashtra police will take drastic action against those who are needlessly trying to create a religious dispute.

Reacting to this development, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray also said while addressing citizens on Facebook, "Aag na lagaaye. Ye majhab ki baat nahi hai (Do not spread the fire of hatred. This is not a case of religion." Thackeray added that this was but the unfortunate result of a misunderstanding and that the administration is looking to take swift action against whoever found guilty and responsible in the matter.

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