Maharashtra's political scene, known for its intense party rivalries, has now witnessed confrontations spilling onto the streets. As the upcoming assembly elections approach, political tensions in the state are heating up. Notably, within the span of two days, there have been two incidents of attacks on the cars of political leaders. This has left many citizens wondering how to react to such developments.
Maharashtra has a rich tradition of political culture, marked by decorum and respect. However, the current scenario is marred by increasing animosity. This hostility has now escalated to street-level clashes, with the recent incidents highlighting a troubling trend. In response to these events, Prakash Ambedkar, the leader of the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi, has made a provocative statement. He has called on those vandalizing vehicles to target the cars of four prominent and powerful leaders in Maharashtra, even naming them directly.
"Now, where does Mitkari belong? To the Ajit Pawar faction. And where does Jitendra Awhad belong? To the Sharad Pawar faction. My appeal to those who are vandalizing cars is, why are you targeting the small fry? Breaking their cars won't achieve anything. If you really want to break cars, I’ll give you the names of four people. Break the cars of former Union Minister Sharad Pawar, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Thackeray faction leader Uddhav Thackeray, and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Why waste time on the small fry?” said Prakash Ambedkar.
In the past two days, there have been two separate incidents of car vandalism involving political leaders in Maharashtra. The first incident involved members of Sambhaji Raje Chhatrapati’s Swarajya Sanghatana vandalizing the car of Jitendra Awhad, an MLA from the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). This incident has escalated tensions in the state. The attack was reportedly a response to Jitendra Awhad’s criticism of Sambhaji Raje Chhatrapati. Supporters of Sambhaji Raje took this criticism personally and retaliated by vandalizing Awhad's car.
A day before the attack on Awhad’s car, a similar incident occurred in Akola. MNS workers vandalized the car of Amol Mitkari, an MLA from the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP. Mitkari had made derogatory remarks about MNS President Raj Thackeray, calling him a “supari baaj.” This comment deeply offended MNS workers, leading them to retaliate by vandalizing Mitkari’s car in Akola.