An outburst of people: Thackeray on Badlapur protests

MUMBAI: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday slammed chief minister Eknath Shinde for calling Badlapur protests “political” and said those who think that way are either abnormal or protectors of culprits. “The protests were an outburst of the people over crimes against girls,” said Thackeray.
He attributed the outburst to the delay in registering a case and taking action against the accused. “Badlapur incident was an outburst of people as many such incidents of sexual abuse of girls were reported across the state. If the school management and police had acted on time after the complaint by the parents of the girls, the situation would not have gone out of control,” he said.
He urged people of the state to participate in the bandh called by the opposition parties on August 24. “Maharashtra bandh is not politics but a show of unity. We all need to unite against culprits so that there is a fear of strict punishment, and no one dares to abuse women and girls,” he said at a press conference at Shiv Sena Bhavan.
The Sena (UBT) chief questioned the chief minister’s presence at a government-sponsored event when he should have been in Badlapur to assuage the feelings of the outraged people. “Where was CM Eknath Shinde when people in Badlapur were protesting? He was busy at an event of Ladki Bahin. CM should first ensure the safety of women and then bring the Ladki Bahin scheme. If girls are not safe in schools, then the slogan that girl education brings prosperity to the family is meaningless.”
Questioning the silence of the police commissioner of Thane on the case and the delay in registering the case, Thackeray said, “Generally, police do not act like this. Was there any pressure on them for not registering the case? If yes, who was pressurising them?”
He also slammed a senior leader of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena in Badlapur, Waman Mhatre, for making objectionable remarks to a woman journalist who reported about the incident.