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Journalism of Courage
The NCP made a U-turn on the issue of seeking an investigation against IPS officer Anjana Krishna after questioning her education qualification and her appointment even as activist Anjali Damania sought filing of an FIR against Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar for reprimanding the bureaucrat.
The U-turn comes in the face of the severe criticism which Ajit Pawar has drawn after he purportedly rebuked the IPS officer for taking action against those indulging in illegal excavation in Kurdu village of Solapur district. A video of Ajit Pawar reprimanding Karmala deputy superintendent of police Anjana Krishna went viral on social media. The Deputy Chief Minister’s rebuke came after his party worker, Baba Jagtap, called him and handed over the phone to Krishna. Since Krishna could not recognise whether she was actually speaking to Ajit Pawar, she asked him to contact her directly on her phone, which angered the Deputy Chief Minister.
NCP spokesperson Amol Mitkari, who on Saturday demanded an investigation against Krishna, said, ”I withdraw my tweet regarding the Solapur incident unconditionally and apologise.”
Stating he posted the tweet on his own and that it did not reflect the NCP’s position, Mitkari said, “I have the highest respect for the police force and officers who serve honestly. I completely agree with the position of the party’s senior leadership,” he said while retracting the tweet.
The NCP spokesperson’s tweet came a day after Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said he never intended to interfere in the work of law enforcement and was only trying to ensure the situation on the ground remained calm and not escalate. “I have the highest respect for our police force and its officers, including the woman officers who serve with distinction and courage and I value the rule of law above all. I remain firmly committed to transparent governance and to ensuring that every illegal activity, including sand mining, is dealt with strictly as per the law,” Pawar had said in a statement on Friday.
Meanwhile, activist Anjali Damani said she will approach the Chief Minister, seeking filing of an FIR against Ajit Pawar. ”I know the government will not act but I will contact a senior advocate and urge him to approach the Supreme Court and move a petition to file an FIR against Ajit Pawar,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Solapur police have filed a case against local NCP leader and his assocates for trying to obstruct government officials when they went to Kurdu village on August 31 to stop illegal soil excavation operation.
