Yavatmal: Shiv Sena (UBT) President Uddhav Thackeray gave an earful to election department officials in Yavatmal who rummaged through his chartered helicopter and personal baggage on Monday.
Thackeray, along with other party leaders landed at the helipad in Wani, where they were accosted by a team of election officials, who stepped forward to check the chopper and their private baggage kept inside, as they came for a schedule of election rallies.
Apparently riled by this, the SS (UBT) supremo called the official and asked him to identify himself and also questioned them about the sudden scrutiny of their belongings.
Then, in a banter-style, Thackeray asked him how many leaders’ bags he had examined so far, as the official tried to mumble his evasive replies – all of which were caught on camera by an official videographer who claimed to be from Madhya Pradesh.
The former Chief Minister then queried the official whether he had checked the bags of PM Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, or Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the pink-jacketed Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.
When the flustered official replied to everything in the negative, Thackeray asked him to ensure that he (the official) scans the bags of PM Modi and Amit Shah, and others and to send him the videos doing that, to which the former nodded.
After the brief altercation, Thackeray allowed the officials to check his bags placed inside the private helicopter, the entire operation was recorded, and then the officials left the venue.
The video of the incident soon became viral and evoked sharp reactions from several party bigwigs like Deputy Leader Sushma Andhare, Spokesperson Kishore Tiwari and more.
Andhare said that after the Director General of Police was changed recently, there was optimism that the elections would be fair and transparent, but the hopes are being belied with the latest incident.
Tiwari said that though nobody has any objection to the frisking of bags of VIPs as per the Election Commission of India directives or the code of conduct, “why should it be done selectively only for the Opposition parties’ leaders while the ruling side leaders virtually pass through a ‘green channel’ unchecked”.
Later, at his public rally in the Wani Assembly constituency, the SS (UBT) chief raked up the incident in his speech, and also advised his political colleagues to ensure that they first confirm the identity of the officials, the authorisation letter and even the pockets of those who are sent to carry out such checks.
“My question is: whether the election officials go through the bags of PM Modi, HM Shah, Shinde, Fadnavis and Pawar or not? If they don’t, then my men will do the needful,” cautioned Thackeray.
The ECI has mandated the checking of the aircraft of most VVIPs in the polling season ostensibly to prevent ferrying any unauthorised or objectionable allurements to sway the voters.
(Quaid Najmi can be contacted at: qnajmi@gmail.com)
–IANS
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