Hearing kind words from Maharashtra Navanirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray for ordinary cops, a constable on Tuesday turned emotional and greeted the MNS leader with rose, minutes after he launched a vitriolic attack on the city police chief over the 11 August Azad Maidan violence.
But soon after, Pramod Tawde was detained by the Mumbai Police for breaking the protocol of talking to a political leader while on duty.
Constable Pramod Tawade greets MNS chief Raj Thackeray with a rose. Parag Shinde/ Firstpost
After giving a rose to Thackeray, Tawade told the media how he and his colleagues in the traffic department were assaulted by CISF men on 13 August 2010. He wrote to the president, prime minister, chief minister and home minister seeking swift action against the CISF personnel, alleging that the matter was “hushed up” at the behest of the Union home minister.
“When I approached Arup Patnaik seeking action against the CISF men, he made fun of me saying I look like Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose,” Tawde said.
When Tawde was asked if his gesture of greeting the MNS leader would not invite action from his superiors, he said, “Let them take action, I am ready.”
Thackeray led a march defying the police and held a rally at Azad Maidan to condemn last fortnight’s violence and sought resignation of state Home Minister RR Patil and Mumbai Police commissioner Arup Patnaik.
