Case lodged against 'unidentified' supporters of Awhad, cops

A case has been registered against Maharashtra Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad's unidentified supporters and policemen after a man alleged that he was beaten up at Awhad's Thane residence over a Facebook post.

Opposition BJP demanded on Wednesday that the NCP leader be sacked from the Uddhav Thackeray-led government.

On the complaint of Anant Karmuse (40), the victim, a case of assault, kidnapping and criminal intimidation was registered at Vartak Nagar police station in Thane city on Tuesday, said Deputy Commissioner of Police Avinash Ambure.

The FIR did not identify any of the accused. The probe was on but nobody had been arrested, the DCP said.

Karmuse, a civil engineer, had alleged that some police personnel visited his house on Sunday night, telling him that he would have to go to police station, but instead took him to Awhad's bungalow.

At the bungalow, he was beaten black and blue by some ten to fifteen men over a morphed picture of the minister he had shared on Facebook, he said, alleging that this happened in Awhad's presence.

Karmuse had earlier criticised Awhad on social media when the minister announced that he would not follow prime minister Narendra Modi's appeal to light lamps on April 5.

Awhad, on Wednesday, shared screen shots of tweets where some persons had threatened that he would be killed like rationalist Narendra Dabholkar. Dabholkar was shot dead in Pune in 2013, allegedly by followers of a right-wing Hindu group.

Another Twitter user even threatened to sexually abuse his daughter, Awhad said, adding that he and his family were the target of such threats and trolling for the last five years.

Meanwhile, former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis demanded that Governor B S Koshyari sack Awhad from cabinet.

"It is wrong to post objectionable content and target someone. But if, as per the victim's complaint, Awhad is involved in thrashing the person, he should be removed from the cabinet," the BJP leader said.

Former BJP MP Kirit Somaiya claimed that he was arrested by the police on Wednesday when he tried to meet Karmuse.