Union Minister Narayan Rane granted bail over 'derogatory' remarks against Maharashtra CM

A court in Mahad granted Union Minister Narayan Rane bail on Tuesday, in one of the FIRs against him for his 'derogatory' remarks against Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray. While the Mahad Police booked him under Sections 153A, 184, 504, 505(2), and 506 of the Indian Penal Code, he faces three other FIRs in connection with the same controversy at Pune, Nashik and Thane. Rane was arrested earlier on August 24 after the Ratnagiri Sessions court turned down his anticipatory bail plea.

While his advocate Aniket Nikam filed an appeal against this order before the Bombay High Court, a bench comprising Justices SS Shinde and NJ Jamadar refused an urgent hearing. After being produced before Judicial Magistrate Shaikhbabaso Patil on Tuesday night, government counsel Bhushan Salvi sought police custody of the BJP MP for 7 days to probe the possibility of a "conspiracy" to demean the reputation of the Chief Minister. While this request was rejected, the court sent him to judicial custody for 14 days.

Thereafter, the BJP MP's counsel Rajendra Shirodkar pressed for bail citing that his client was suffering from sugar and blood pressure issues. He maintained that the Union Minister's custody was not necessary as he had been charged under offences punishable with less than 7 years of imprisonment. Moreover, he claimed that Rane's arrest was illegal as no summons were reportedly issued to him under Section 41A of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

Allowing the bail plea, Judicial Magistrate Shaikhbabaso Patil directed the Union Minister to furnish a bail bond of Rs.15,000 with a surety of the like amount. Besides this, he was directed to appear before the police on August 30 and September 13. Rane, who headed back to Mumbai, is likely to move an application before the Bombay HC later on Wednesday demanding the quashing of all the FIRs registered against him. Meanwhile, the Nashik Police has summoned him to join the investigation on September 2. 

Narayan Rane's remarks spark row

During his interaction in Mahad as a part of the 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra' on Monday, Narayan Rane claimed that Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray forgot the year of Independence during a public event on August 15. The BJP Rajya Sabha MP added that he would have "slapped" Thackeray had he been present on the occasion. He even attributed the COVID-19 deaths in Maharashtra to the purported incompetence of the Shiv Sena chief. 

Disapproving these remarks, ex-Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis remarked, "I don't think he intended to say such a thing. The Chief Minister's post is an important position. That's why we (BJP) feel that it is necessary to exercise caution while talking about the post or the person occupying it."