NAGPUR, Dec 16: The Deputy Chief Minister, Gopinath Munde, who also holds the Home portfolio, today strongly defended the killing of 128 criminals in police encounters during the two-and-a-half years of coalition government, claiming that it has demoralised Mumbai's underworld.Replying to a discussion on law and order situation in the State capital, Mumbai, initiated by the leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council, Chhagan Bhujbal, Wasudha Deshmukh, Azhar Hussain (Congress), Venkappa Patki (Janata Dal) and others, the Deputy Chief Minister described the charges by the opposition of false encounters to eliminate gangsters, as baseless and motivated.Munde, declared that there would no loosening in the reins in the drive against criminals and quoted statistics to prove that there was a marked decline of crimes rates, particularly gang-wars in Mumbai during the Sena-BJP regime. He described the leader of the opposition in the Council, Chhagan Bhujbal's series of allegations as `tissues of lies' which would put even Goebbells to a shame.The opposition members alleged that the law and order situation in the State deteriorated in the regime of Sena-BJP coalition and there was a reign of terror of criminals in the State. They alleged that people are being murdered in broad day light by criminals and there was no security .
