BJP minister gets 1-month jail for pouring mud on official
What's the story
A court in Sindhudurg, Maharashtra, has sentenced Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) minister Nitesh Rane to one month in prison. The sentence comes after Rane was found guilty of pouring mud on National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) engineer Prakash Shedekar during a protest over the Mumbai-Goa highway's poor condition in 2019. The incident took place when Rane was still with the Congress party.
Verdict details
Rane found guilty of insulting public servant
While Rane and 29 others were initially charged with offenses like rioting and criminal conspiracy, they were acquitted due to lack of evidence. However, the court found Rane guilty under the Indian Penal Code section 504 for intentionally insulting a public servant. The judge observed that "Even though Rane's intention was to raise a voice against the poor quality of work and inconvenience faced by the people, he was not supposed to humiliate or insult a public servant in public."
Court's stance
Court terms his actions 'abuse of power'
The court termed Rane's actions as "abuse of power" and held that "it is the demand of time to curb such tendency." It said if such incidents continue, public servants wouldn't be able to discharge their duties with dignity. The judge also noted that compelling Shedekar to walk through muddy water was an intentional insult that could provoke a breach of public peace.
Sentence suspension
Sentence suspended to allow appeal
After the verdict, Rane's sentence was suspended to give him time to appeal in a higher court. The other 29 accused were acquitted of all charges. The incident had occurred on July 4, 2019, when Rane called Shedekar to inspect widening work on the Mumbai-Goa Highway over the Gad River bridge. Frustrated with poor roadwork and waterlogging, Rane and his followers confronted Shedekar and poured muddy water on him.