MNS, BJP men held over clash

A total of 18 workers belonging to both Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) were arrested in connection with attacks on a local BJP leader’s office in Kurar area of Malad east and an MNS party office in the same suburb of north Mumbai.

Of these 18 people, two were from BJP and the rest were from the MNS. According to the deputy commissioner of police of the area, M. Ramkumar, the police arrested all the accused by late Sunday evening. All of them were produced in court of Monday and were released on bail.

Mohit Kamboj, the local BJP leader whose office was allegedly attacked by MNS workers and who was also attacked himself, said, “It was me and my office that were attacked, and my workers fought back in self-defence. Those MNS workers who were arrested by the police have a bad track record.”

Meanwhile, a senior police inspector of Kurar police station, Limbanna Vhanamane, told The Asian Age that a few more arrests are also possible in the case as a video was recorded at the time of the incident when MNS people were creating ruckus and the police is trying to identity all the people who are in it. “Later they will be arrested,” said Mr Vhanamane.

Earlier, on Saturday night, MNS workers allegedly attacked Mr Kamboj’s office and on Sunday they allegedly attacked Mr Kamboj himself in Appawadi area. Following this, BJP workers retaliated swiftly by allegedly vandalising an MNS party office in the Kurar suburb of North Mumbai.

According to police sources, when police vans went to the place in Kurar to calm down the MNS and BJP workers, a few party workers pelted stones at the police van. However, no official was injured in the incident, a senior official from Kurar police station said.

The issue started on Wednesday, when MNS chief Raj Thackeray asked his party workers to torch new auto rickshaws driven by non-Maharashtrians. After this Mr Kamboj allegedly wrote a letter threatening Mr Thackeray, which went viral on social media.