In a shocking incident, a 65-year-old retired Navy officer from Mumbai was thrashed and assaulted by a group of eight to ten Shiv Sena activists for sharing a satirical cartoon of Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray in a Whatsapp group. Samata police station has lodged an FIR under assault and rioting, and has arrested six people.
The victim, identified as Madan Kashinath Sharma is a retired navy officer and lives in Thakur Complex in Kandivli (East). The two main accused include Shiv Sena Shakha chiefs Kamlesh Kadam and Sanjay Manjre.
“A case of assault and rioting under various sections of Indian Penal Code was registered against Kadam, who is Sena’s local shakha pramukh, and others. Kadam and five others were arrested on Friday night,” stated Raju Kasbe, senior inspector of Samta Nagar police station.
Madan Sharma told that he received a forwarded image in a Whatsapp message on Wednesday. The satirical image takes a dig at the Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray and also contains the cartoons of Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi and NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar. He forwarded the message to his housing society group.
“As per the FIR filed by Sharma, on Friday around 10 am, he had received a phone call from an unknown number. The caller asked Sharma who he was and asked for his address. Sharma gave him the details, after which at around 10.30 am, he again received a phone call from a person who identified himself as Kamlesh Kadam. Kadam inquired with Sharma why he had posted the image of Uddhav Thackeray, and Sharma informed the caller that he had just forwarded it in another group,” a police official told.
Then, Sharma received the third call on his intercom and was asked to come down to the society gate. Then, nearly a dozen of Shiv Sena activists were present there on the gate. “They assaulted me, punched me and kicked me. My right eye sustained injuries,” told Madan Sharma.
The victim’s daughter mentioned that her father received 10-15 threat calls without any provocation and just for forwarding an image. She had urged for a strict action against the goons and also called for the imposition of President’s rule in Maharashtra.
