Awhad should be sacked from ministry: BJP

The BJP on Wednesday demanded that Maharashtra Governor B S Koshyari remove state housing minister Jitendra Awhad from the cabinet for his alleged involvement in an assault on a man over a social media post. Former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis led a delegation of BJP leaders which met the governor earlier in the day to raise the issue of the Uddhav Thackeray government's `failure' to contain the coronavirus spread in Maharashtra.

In a video message afterwards, Fadnavis said, "It is wrong to post objectionable content and target someone. But if, as per the victim's complaint, Awhad is involved in thrashing the person, he should be removed from the cabinet.

"If a minister starts taking law into hand, there will be no law and order in the state. We demand that a First Information Report be registered and strict action be taken," the BJP leader said.

"The way that person was picked up from his home, taken to Awhad's residence and thrashed is not acceptable," Fadnavis added.

According to Anant Karmuse (40), a Thane resident, some police personnel took him to Awhad's bungalow on Sunday night, and he was beaten black and blue in the minister's presence over a morphed picture of Awhad he had posted on Facebook.