MLAs accused of assault on Mumbai cop surrender

The two Maharashtra legislators — Kshitij Thakur of the Bahujan Vikas Aghadi and Ram Kadam of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) — who had allegedly assaulted a policeman on the premises of the state Assembly on Tuesday, today surrendered before the Mumbai Crime Branch.

They have been remanded to police custody till March 22.

Both legislators have been booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including two non-bailable charges of deterring a public servant from performing his duty and criminal intimidation.

On Monday, Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Suryavanshi had stopped Thakur for speeding on the Bandra-Worli sealink in Mumbai.

On Tuesday, Suryavanshi came to meet the state legislative council deputy chairman Vasant Davkhare. According to police, as Suryavanshi was going back, he was accosted by a mob of MLAs led by Thakur in the corridors of the legislature. Thakur accused the policeman of breach of privilege and alleged he had also abused him when he stopped him on the Bandra-Worli sealink. Suryavanshi was beaten severely and later  had to be admitted to hospital.

On Wednesday, Thakur, Kadam and three other legislators, - Rajan Salvi from the Shiv Sena, Jaikumar Rawal from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and an independent Pradeep Jaiswal - were suspended from the House till December 31. All five were part of the group that accosted Suryavanshi.