Mumbai News

Bombay HC rejects minister’s apology for ‘impromptu’ village event – Times of India

Bombay high court

Mumbai: A day after the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay high court questioned minister for EGS and horticulture Sandipan Bhumare’s holding of ceremonies in his constituency despite the pandemic lockdown restrictions, it declined to accept an unconditional apology from him on Thursday.
Bhumare, through Advocate S S Thombre, filed an application to say he was not aware whether a ceremony was arranged on May 7 in Devgaon village in Paithan taluka. The Shiv Sena politician said he reached the village casually and was surprised to see a collection of villagers. He said he had no intention of violating the lockdown restrictions and apologised for participating in a function that day. His said his aim was to ensure that the unemployed get work under employment guarantee schemes.
Chief public prosecutor D R Kale said that since Dhumare had apologised there was no need to register an offence.
The bench of Justice R V Ghuge and Justice B U Debadwar said it found it difficult to believe that a minister casually visited his village, found a crowd and suddenly a function started and “suddenly a bhoomi pujan (ground breaking) ceremony was also performed’’ as a “mighty coincidence”.
The high court said that “such coincidence is impossible”, more so as a gramsevak had lodged an FIR against five persons about the minister desiring to conduct a bhoomi pujan at the primary health centre in Mauji, Devgaon.
The high court said Dhumare by his application before it had attempted to create an eyewash and disposed of it saying it could not entertain his plea in view of the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code.
The high court disposed of another application by D R Gorde, who sought action against Bhumare for violation of lockdown rules. Th high court on Thursday in its order said Gorde could take his grievances to the police station concerned.
The high court had on Wednesday said: “We are called upon today to face a peculiar and weird situation, regarding people’s representative, politicians and ministers flouting lockdown restrictions and conducting public functions physically and that too by making a farce of appeals to the public not to attend such a physical function,” said the high court.
It had said it was compelled to direct that these “respected” representatives of citizens should not hold physical ceremonies and functions. These would include inauguration of any constituency development programme, bhoomi pujan and felicitations, said the high court.
The high court asked whether the politician was not duty bound to obey the chief minister’s instructions.

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Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/bombay-hc-rejects-ministers-apology-for-impromptu-village-event/articleshow/82618073.cms