MUMBAI: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Friday accused Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar of protecting “thieves” and said he has no right to remain in the government. His statements came after a video allegedly showing Pawar reprimanding a woman IPS officer surfaced.As per news agency PTI, Raut claimed Pawar was instructing the officer to shield illegal activities while publicly preaching lawfulness. “He is so disciplined, right? Where is your discipline? He is scolding her to protect the thieves of his party,” the Rajya Sabha member said.He added that illegal excavation of ‘murrum’ soil, widely used in road construction, causes significant loss to the exchequer. “This has come out in public. Ajit Pawar has no right to be in the government. Earlier, many leaders had to resign on moral grounds in similar cases,” Raut alleged. “You are robbing the entire state. Ministers should be ashamed.”The video reportedly shows Pawar speaking to IPS officer Anjana Krishna, sub-divisional officer of Karmala, while she was taking action against illegal excavation in Solapur district. Initially, Krishna did not recognize Pawar’s voice, as he called from an NCP worker’s phone. Pawar later made a video call, sternly asking her to stop the action.The NCP, however, claimed Pawar did not intend to halt the enforcement but may have reprimanded the officer to placate party workers. The party also suggested the video clip had been deliberately leaked.
