Shiv Sena MPs forced Muslim catering manager to break Ramzan fast?

In a clear case of disregard for religious sentiments, 11 Shiv Sena MPs reportedly forced a Muslim catering manager, who was fasting for Ramzan, to eat a full chappati as they were not being served Maharashtrian food at the state residency in the national capital.

The incident, according to The Indian Express  occured last week at the swanky new Maharashtra Sadan in Lutyens Delhi when a group of around 15 MPs were having a meeting where complaints about the lack of services at the sadan were being discussed.

The catering service, which is managed by Indian Railways’ IRCTC, was immediately suspended in protest.

“The MPs walked inside the public dining hall and started throwing chafing dish covers in the buffet area. They also issued physical threats to the kitchen and service staff while using highly objectionable language,” IRCTC Deputy GM Shankar Malhotra wrote in an email sent to Resident Commissioner Bipin Mallick, the daily reported .

Arshad, in his complaint to Malhotra, as reported by IE, said: “I was wearing a formal uniform set as prescribed by IRCTC and everybody in the panel also knew my name as ‘Arshad’ as I was wearing the name tag. Even then they inserted chapati in my mouth which caused my fast to break on the eve of Ramzan. I was hurt with the thing they have done as religious sentiments are concerned.”

The Shiv Sena, however, has denied these allegations, which also include damaging the resident commissioner’s office, breaking a wall clock, and writing ‘Jai Maharshtra’ on a wall.

“These are wrong allegations, someone is doing mischief. There are many problems with Maharashtra Sadan that have come up, but I don’t even stay there,” MP Sanjay Raut told the daily .

Another MP, Arvind Sawant, complained of the ’terrible food and tiny rooms’ that MPs are subjected to, saying: “No tod phod happened at all, but we have been provoked in a sustained manner. Nobody was manhandled, but if you keep abusing, will someone not slap?”

The Shiv Sena MPs named in the incident are: Sanjay Raut (Rajya Sabha), Anandrao Adsul (Amravati), Rajan Vichare (Thane), Arvind Sawant (Mumbai-South), Hemant Godse (Nashik), Krupal Tumane (Ramtek), Ravindra Gaikwad (Osmanabad), Vinayak Raut (Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg), Shivaji Adhalrao Patil (Shirur), Rahul Shewale (Mumbai-South Central) and Shrikant Shinde (Kalyan).

You can read the entire Indian Express report here.