Maha BJP MLA Nitesh Rane, brother booked for remarks against Sharad Pawar

The Mumbai police on Sunday registered an FIR against Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Nitesh Rane and his brother Nilesh Rane for allegedly making remarks against Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, an official said.

The case was registered at the Azad Maidan police station under various Indian Penal Code Section, including 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 499 (defamation), 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) based on a complaint of NCP functionary Shrinivas alias Vyankatrao Suraj Chavan.

Chavan submitted to the police some video clips in which the Rane brothers, sons of Union minister Narayan Rane, were purportedly seen making the remarks.

In his complaint, Chavan mentioned that Nitesh Rane, while talking to reporters last Wednesday, asked why Pawar had not taken the resignation of Maharashtra minister and NCP's chief spokesperson Nawab Malik even though he was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case.

According to the complainant, the BJP MLA had alleged that Pawar may also be an aid of fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim.

The same day, former MP Nilesh Rane also allegedly made similar comments on Twitter, Chavan mentioned in his complaint.

Meanwhile, Nitesh Rane told reporters here on Sunday that, “We will tell the police what we have to if an offence has been registered. What is wrong in what we said? We sided with Hindutva. We have not tried to instigate a riot. If it is a mistake to side with Hindutva, then we will commit that mistake 100 times."

He said Pawar had alleged that Malik is being linked to Dawood Ibrahim because the minority affairs minister comes from Muslim community.

“So, I just questioned later whether (another) Maharashtra minister Anil Deshmukh was asked to resign because he is a Hindu? We just tried to reply to the issue Pawar saheb raised. Where is the question of instigating riots here?” he asked.

The BJP MLA said he is also of the firm view that there should be no Hindu-Muslim riots in the country.

“But we, being Hindutvavadis, will not let Hindus face injustice,” he added.