In an appalling incident of misuse of power, a Shiv Sena MP has been accused of forcefully feeding a Muslim staffer and forcing him to break his fast on the eve of Ramadan at Maharashtra Sadan in New Delhi last week.
A video showing the MP's act went viral today. The short video showed the MP thrusting a chapati into the staffer’s mouth.
According to media reports, at least 11 Shiv Sena members of Parliament, Sanjay Raut (Rajya Sabha), Anandrao Adsul (Amravati), Rajan Vichare (Thane), Arvind Sawant (Mumbai-South), Hemant Godse (Nashik), Krupal Tumane were involved in the act.
The MPs were reportedly angry over not being served Maharashtrian food.
The incident sparked outrage in the parliament as well after the video of the MP went viral.
"This (uproar over the incident) is an attempt to silence Shiv Sena's voice. We are proponents of Hindutva but we don't have hatred for other religions," Party chief Uddhav Thackrey said, according to PTI
Several took to Twitter to express their outrage on the matter.
The Shiv Sena issue isn't just about religious bigotry. It's about taking the law into your own hands. Mob justice by MPs is unpardonable!
— Milind Deora (@milinddeora) July 23, 2014
South Mumbai's MP making us proud with his front page debut pic.twitter.com/XD9TcEVudY
— Milind Deora (@milinddeora) July 23, 2014Former Indian Telecom, IT, Shipping Minister & Congress member Milind Deora tweeted.
Feeding a fasting Muslim staff member at Maharashtra Sadan during Ramadan is utterly disgusting. Time for @PMOIndia to act tough on ShivSena
— Sandipan Suklabaidya (@beduinesandipan) July 23, 2014
#Condemn the INCIDENT involving #ShivSena MPs. Its an ACT AGAINST #Humanity & spirit of #Indianness. Demand ENQUIRY. pic.twitter.com/0ghhAvQ4fF
— Sanjay nirupam (@sanjaynirupam) July 23, 2014
Shiv sena literally caught with its pants down. Lets see how PM modi deals with this one #senagundaism
— bhupendra chaubey (@bhupendrachaube) July 23, 2014
Shiv Sena supporters claim that the MP was not aware of the staffer's religion. The claim however only exemplifies the fact that the derogatory manner in which the MPs behaved is offensive and unlawful for people of any religion.
Meanwhile, the canteen run by IRCTC has stopped all its operations to protest the incident. It have even complained about similar treatment being meted out to its staffers in the past by MPs. Maharashtra Sadan has apologised to the employee.
This is not the first time that the Shiv Sena has drawn attention because of its 'goonda' behaviour.
The party that originally emerged from a movement that vouched for favourable treatment for Maharashtrians over migrants has been infamous for its strong-arm methods to enforce their point.
In 2009, the party activists vandalised the offices of news channels IBN-7 and IBN-Lokmat in Mumbai and Pune . A Shiv Sena member had even attacked IBN-Lokmat's then editor, Nikhil Wagle.
Shiv Sena members had also threatened Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan of stalling the release of his film, My Name Is Khan, after the star stated that he would like Pakistani cricketers to participate in the third season of the IPL.
