Two BJP Corporators, Five Others Booked in Shivaji Nagar Shop Dispute Clash

The Shivaji Nagar police in Ambernath booked two BJP corporators and five others on Sunday for allegedly attacking a Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader with an iron rod during a dispute over a shop in Shivaji Nagar.

The accused have been identified as BJP corporators Pawan Valekar and Abhijit Karanjule, along with Shubham Shinde, Laxminarayan Chauhan, Bharat Mhetre, Shrikant Reddy, and Santosh Shinde. The case was registered following days of political tension between the two parties.

According to the complainant, Suhas Ghag, who is a relative of MNS Ambernath president Shailesh Shirke, the dispute over possession of a shop in Shivaji Nagar broke out between Chauhan and Shirke around 1 am on Wednesday. Ghag stated that he went to intervene and resolve the matter when Valekar, Karanjule, and the other five accused attacked him with an iron rod. Ghag sustained serious injuries to his hand, and the group also allegedly damaged his car.

Prior to this case, the Shivaji Nagar police had arrested Shirke and his supporters in connection with the same incident. Following those arrests, the MNS alleged that the police action was one-sided, stating that Shirke and his supporters had also suffered injuries during the clash while no BJP members had been booked.

MNS Thane president Avinash Jadhav subsequently demanded that police register a case against the BJP leaders. Jadhav visited the Shivaji Nagar police station and announced plans to stage a protest on Sunday if action was not taken. The planned protest was called off after the police registered the FIR against the seven accused.

A police official from the Shivaji Nagar police station confirmed that a case has been registered against the seven accused under Sections 118(1), 115(2), 189(2), 190, 191(2), and 324(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.