Maharashtra state Congress president Harshvardhan Sapkal has claimed that the Mumbai police have been monitoring him. He alleged that an officer, in plain clothes, entered his official accommodation in Mumbai and proceeded to his bedroom to question him about his interactions with the press. Sapkal stated that this was the third such incident since he assumed the role of Maharashtra Congress president, drawing parallels to alleged past surveillance activities like the Pegasus spyware, suggesting a pattern of the ruling party spying on opposition leaders.
Sapkal contacted the Gamdevi police station after the incident, as the officer mentioned acting on orders from higher authorities. However, the police reportedly denied any knowledge of the matter.
Reacting to the allegations, Maharashtra Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule dismissed them, suggesting that such snooping occurred during previous administrations and asserted that the current government’s focus is solely on state development. Sapkal also raised concerns about the recent police shooting of Rohit Aarrya, who held hostages, questioning the necessity of police firing when an NSG team was present. He further called for a probe into the incident, noting the hostage-taker’s past involvement in government projects and appearances with state leaders.
Additionally, Sapkal accused Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of shielding criminals, citing the alleged murder of a female doctor in Phaltan and the clean chit given to former MP Ranjitsinh Naik Nimbalkar despite serious allegations. Sapkal contended that crime has escalated under Fadnavis’s watch, with the Chief Minister becoming a “patron of criminals.”
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