Maharashtra Home Minister to hold meeting with govt officials regarding Marathi art director Raju Sapte's suicide

Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil on Tuesday told the Legislative Assembly that he will hold a meeting on Wednesday of top government officials regarding the recent suicide of Marathi film and television art director Raju Sapte. Sapte, who had worked as an art director for movies like Ambat Goad, Manyaa the wonder boy, killed himself at his house in Pimpri Chinchwad township on 3 July allegedly due to harassment by a person associated with a labour union, according to police who had registered an abetment to suicide case. Walse Patil told the Lower House that he had spoken to police commissioners in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad and also given directions to the Mumbai Police that such ‘incidents of extortion’ in the film industry will not be tolerated. ‘I have called a meeting tomorrow of ACS (Home), DGP, and other officials to discuss the issue,’ he said. Before taking the extreme step, Sapte had shot a video in which he named a person who he claimed had harassed him, police had said, adding they recovered the video clip and the suicide note.