Mumbai, Dec 12: The Bombay High Court on Thursday pointedly asked the Maharashtra government if there was any restriction on celebrating the birth anniversary of Tipu Sultan of Mysuru in Karnataka.

The query came during a hearing of a plea filed All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) Pune President Faiyaz Shaikh who was refused permission to carry out a procession to commemorate the birth anniversaries of Tipu Sultan, and Bharat Ratna Maulana Abul Kalam Azad last month along with the Constitution Day celebrations, at Baramati in Pune district.

However, the Pune Rural Police declined permission for the events, particularly Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary, directing Shaikh not to celebrate it publicly but to choose a private place for his rally.

The police argument was that it had received representations from another community apprehending law-and-order problems if the AIMIM rally was given the go-ahead.

On this, a division bench comprising Justice Revati Mohite-Dere and Justice Shivkumar Dige asked the Additional Public Prosecutor Kranti Hivrale, who responded in the negative but reiterated that if such a rally was allowed it could lead to a law-and-order scenario.

The judges noted that while law-and-order is the police jurisdiction, but said that if the rally could not be allowed in a particular area on the grounds of security, the organizers could have been asked to change the route, and if they flouted the rules they could face police action.

When APP Hivrale sought time on this, the judges directed Pune (Rural) Superintendent of Police Pankaj Deshmukh to remain present virtually, and he clarified that the objection was only pertaining to the rally for marking Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary.

At this, the court pointed out that the permission sought was not solely for Tipu Sultan’s birthday commemoration but also for the Constitution Day and Bharat Ratna Maulana Azad’s birth anniversary.

“You decide the route for them, but you can’t ask them to celebrate it at their own place… there’s no reason why they can’t be allowed to take out the procession,” said Justice Mohite-Dere.

She made it clear that law-and-order cannot be the ground for denial of permission, but if the organisers used objectionable language or committed any offence, then the police are free to act against them.

The court has now posted the matter for further hearing on December 17 to enable the petitioner Shaikh personally meet Deshmukh and finalise the details of where and how the commemoration rally can be taken out.

Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson Anand Dubey slammed the ruling Mahayuti in Maharashtra on Thursday for its delay in forming a cabinet amid deteriorating law and order in the state.

“The swearing-in of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister was a mere formality…The state cabinet has not been formed. Who will talk about development in the state? The law and order situation in the state has deteriorated.”

“Violence broke out (in Parbhani city) over damaging the replica of the Indian Constitution. The situation in the state is very unfortunate. We want the state cabinet to be formed as soon as possible so that development work can take place in the state,” he added.

Shiv Sena-UBT Leader Priyanka Chaturvedi On The Appointment Of A Home Minister

MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said that the state government had not appointed a Home Minister and questioned if the state would be run from Delhi.

“The results of Maharashtra assembly elections were declared on 23rd November and it took them (Mahayuti) 10-11 days to decide the name of Maharashtra CM and Deputy CMs. There is no information regarding the state cabinet ministers. Violence broke out in the Parbhani city and we don’t know who is the home minister of the state as law and order is a state subject. The Chief Minister and Deputy CMs are in Delhi. Will the state government run from Delhi? The state cabinet should be formed as soon as possible,” she said.

Statement Of Congress MP Varsha Gaekwad

Congress MP Varsha Gaekwad said that the state cabinet needed to be formed as soon as possible.

“They spent so much on the Swearing-in-Ceremony of Maharashtra CM and deputy CMs, the state cabinet should also have taken the oath. Unfortunately, the state cabinet has not taken the oath…Violence broke out in the Parbhani city. The state government needs to control the situation there…The state cabinet should be formed as soon as possible,” she said.

About The Violence That Broke Out In Parbhani City

Earlier, violence broke out in Parbhani city on Wednesday over the alleged vandalising of a replica of the Indian Constitution.

Special Inspector General, Nanded, Shahaji Umap said, “The situation is peaceful. The people who had gathered here in the afternoon, they had to give a representation to the District Magistrate–those people damaged some shops, CCTV cameras, and hoardings of shops.”

“Later, the police had to use some force to control the situation. We have detained about fifty people. The process of registering cases against them has started. The accused of this incident has also been arrested, and a case has been registered against him. He is currently undergoing treatment as the mob has beaten him–he is a lunatic and undergoing treatment; his mental condition is not good. We have also found the documents during the investigation. So I appeal to everyone to maintain peace without giving much importance to this incident,” he added.

Shiv Sena-UBT Leader Priyanka Chaturvedi Takes A Dig At Mahayuti Govt

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi on Wednesday took a dig at the BJP-led Mahayuti government over violence in Maharashtra’s Parbhani and said that the priority of the government is to stay in power.

She said the state does not have a full-time home minister who has responsibility for law and order.

“It’s a very shameful incident, and the violence that is happening is unfortunate. Today, we are in such a situation that the government is sidelining the Constitution. To date, there is no home minister in the state who has the responsibility of law & order.”

“The violence shows the failure of this government…. It shows the government’s priorities, which is to save their rule and not work for the people of the state,” she alleged.

Parbhani District Magistrate Raghunath Khandu Gawade urged people to maintain peace.

“The police administration is on the road. We have the situation under control; we have called in additional police. So on this, I appeal to everyone through you to maintain peace and tranquillity,” he said.

In a shocking incident, a female student of a college located in South Mumbai was sexually harassed while commuting in a shared taxi on November 30. A purported video of the incident recently surfaced online, showing a man sitting beside the student masturbating in the moving taxi.

The video appears to have been captured by the female student herself. A user named Manish Kamat shared the shocking video on X and requested the Mumbai Police to take action against the “creepy man” while tagging its handle.

The police, on Wednesday, took cognisance of the video and asked Kamat to provide contact details to further investigate the matter.

Along with the video, the user also shared a screenshot of an email that was apparently sent by the victim’s friend to a social media influencer.

According to the victim’s friend, the incident occurred on November 30 when the victim was returning home from college in a shared taxi to Grant Road station.

The victim’s friend claimed that the man masturbated in the taxi in her presence.

The person who sent the email requested the recipient to post the video and spread awareness about the incident as soon as possible.

“My friend is still traumatised by this incident. She is going through mental distress. Please do something,” the email read.

The video was first shared by an Instagram handle called ‘mumbaiinlst24hrs’.