Police in Maharashtra’s Thane district have registered a case against BJP MLA Nitesh Rane over his recent speeches in which he allegedly threatened to hit Muslims by “entering mosques”, an official said on Wednesday. The Bhoiwada police in Bhiwandi on Tuesday booked the lawmaker under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections 302 (uttering words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound religious feelings of any person) and 351 (criminal intimidation), he said.
Nitesh Rane addressed two public meetings in Shrirampur and Topkhana areas in Ahmednagar district on September 1 in support of Hindu seer Mahant Ramgiri Maharaj, who was in the news last month for allegedly making derogatory remarks about Islam and Prophet Muhammad. The MLA warned there would be repercussions if the Maharaj was harmed. In a viral video, he can be heard purportedly declaring that if anyone says anything against Ramgiri Maharaj, “We will enter your mosques and hit you one by one. Keep this in mind.” The case has been transferred from Bhiwandi to Ahmednagar district, where the alleged hate speeches were given, the official added. An official had said earlier that two FIRs (first information reports) had been registered against Rane at Shrirampur and Topkhana police stations in Ahmednagar district, around 260km from Mumbai, for criminal intimidation, intentionally insulting to breach peace and hurting religious sentiments
Haji Arfat Shaikh, a state BJP leader, has strongly criticised Rane, challenging him to visit mosques if he truly intends to attack Muslims. Shaikh has also called upon party leaders to restrain the outspoken MLA.In a video shared on social media, Shaikh said that Rane was overstepping boundaries. "He is not the 'Gabbar' (a notorious villain from a Bollywood film) but the 'gobar' (cowdung) of Hindus," Shaikh remarked. He cautioned Rane against using derogatory language about Prophet Muhammad and Islam, warning that if Muslims were to take to the streets in retaliation, Rane "would not even be able to open his mouth".Shaikh, who heads the Maharashtra State Muslim Khatik Samaj Unit and formerly led the Maharashtra state minority commission, expressed his discomfort in facing his community as a BJP leader following Rane's anti-Muslim comments.