Mumbai Crime: NCP corporator claims Shiv Sainiks threatened him

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There was high drama at the tree authority meeting in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Thursday, when Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) members had a face-off.

NCP corporator and TA member Kaptan Malik claimed that Sena members started abusing and threatening him. After the meeting, Malik complained to the Mumbai police commissioner, and was given security.

The tiff between the two parties has intensified in the past three weeks as Malik was among those who supported the tree-cutting proposal, while his party had earlier opposed the development of Metro line 3 car depot in Aarey Milk Colony. Since the proposal to cut 2,646 trees was approved, it has seen a large number of objections. The Shiv Sena has opposed the proposal.

Sena leaders did not deny sloganeering, but rubbished claims of abuses. The Sena's Standing Committee chairman and TA member, Yashwant Jadhav, said, "Me and municipal commissioner Praveen Pardeshi were about seven minutes late to the meeting. When we reached the meeting hall, there was just one item to be discussed, which was mine and it was approved. But while I was talking to the chairman, Malik wanted to get involved. Then we shouted "NCP chor hai'."

Malik said, "There was no need to threaten me. I met the Commissioner of Police and requested security. I have been given two police personnel for protection. The Sena has woken up now but when Royal Palms was developed under its governance, thousands of trees were cut." Rubbishing these claims, Jadhav said, "The ruling party was not the Sena in the BMC in 1995, so we had nothing to do with it."

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