Ex-Navy man who was assaulted meets Maha Guv; says with BJP-RSS now

Former Navy man Madan Sharma, who was recently attacked by Shiv Sena workers, on Tuesday said he will associate with the Bharatiya Janata Party and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh from now on.

Sharma, who met Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari at Raj Bhavan, along with local BJP leaders Mangal Prabhat Lodha and Atul Bhatkhalkar, said he wants stringent action against those who assaulted him.

"From today onwards, I am with BJP-RSS. When I was beaten up, they had levelled allegations that I am with BJP-RSS. So I am with BJP-RSS from now on," Sharma, 62, told reporters.

In a letter submitted to Koshyari, he said he did not get justice from Maharashtra government and requested the Governor to convey his displeasure over the issue to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

In the letter, Sharma said he suffered eye and back injuries in the attack by the Shiv Sena workers. He claimed that instead of taking action against the assailants, police came to arrest him an hour after the incident.

He said police filed a case against the Sena workers only after he raised the issue with Bhatkhalkar, who is a local BJP MLA.

Sharma said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh spoke to him over phone and Union minister Ramdas Athawale met him at his residence to enquire about his health after the incident.

However, no minister or leader from Maharashtra called or empathised with him after the incident, Sharma added.

Sharma also claimed that Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut had said he was not a Navy man, thereby insulting him and other ex-servicemen.

'They defended the incident and now they are also threatening me. This shows that I wont get justice of any kind from the Maharashtra government,' Sharma said.

'Hence, I request you that you express displeasure over the incident to Maharashtra's Chief Minister Shri Uddhav Thackeray and instruct to take strict action against the attackers so that I get justice,' he wrote in the letter to Koshyari.

Speaking to reporters after meeting Koshayri, Sharma alleged the law and order situation in the state has weakened in the past one year.

"When I was beaten, they (Sena) had accused me of belonging to RSS-BJP. Today, I declare, I will be associated with the RSS-BJP now on," he said.

He said all ex-servicemen are associated with the RSS-BJP now and they will not allow injustice to be meted out to common people.

Sharma was attacked here on Friday after posting on his housing society's WhatsApp group a cartoon lampooning Chief Minister and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray.

After the attack in north Mumbai's Kandivli suburb, Sharma had demanded that the chief minister apologise to him and the country. He had also said that Thackeray should quit his post if he was unable to uphold law and order in the state.

Six Shiv Sena workers rearrested

Meanwhile, six Shiv Sena workers, who were granted bail last week in a case of alleged assault on Sharma, were re-arrested in the early hours of Tuesday, a police official said.

The Indian Penal Code Section 452 (house trespass after preparation of hurt, assault or wrongful restraint), which is non-bailable, was added in the case registered against them, he said.

Earlier, the six persons were arrested last week after local BJP MLA Atul Bhatkhalkar posted a video on Twitter of the assault, but they
were granted bail on Saturday.

The accused were then booked under IPC Section 325 for causing grievous hurt, which is a bailable offence.

Later, Leader of opposition in the state Legislative Council Pravin Darekar, Bhatkhalkar and the victim's family members demanded that the accused be booked under IPC Sections 326 (causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons and means), 452 and 450 (house-trespassing), which are non-bailable.

On the basis of CCTV footage and the complainant's statement, the Samta Nagar police invoked IPC Section 452 against the six accused and re-arrested them around 2 am on Tuesday, a senior police official said.