Chhagan Bhujbal

MUMBAI, July 23; The Shiv Sena today came under the firing line as Chhagan Bhujbal, the leader of the opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council, punched holes in a Saamna story that stated he was behind the desecration of B R Ambedkar's statue in Ramabai Ambedkar Nagar last week.

Bhujbal has also threatened to sue the Sena mouthpiece and its editors for defamation. He said he will explore all legal possibilities in seeking recompense for a front-paged story today that detailed an affidavit filed by one Rajendra Gupta, alias Agarwal. In his affidavit Gupta says that Bhujbal had asked him to violate the statue and that he had turned down the request.

"Arrest me or arrest Bal Thackeray!" he challenged and called for an enquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the allegations against him. In the same breath, he charged Thackeray with conspiracy to malign him in this regard.

Bhujbal demolished the Saamna story by contradicting the dates quoted in the affidavit. According to Saamna, in his affidavit Gupta states that he arrived in Mumbai on July 1 from Shahada, in Dhule district, and later met Bhujbal at his official bungalow, opposite Mantralaya. He returned the same evening to his home town. Bhujbal countered this, stating that he had "fortunately for me", a cast iron case about his movements and whereabouts on the above mentioned date. "On July 1 I was surrounded by lawyers of Sharad Pawar and other Congress leaders as well as Pawar who had used his residence as a meeting place to discuss his deposition before the Srikrishna Commission," said he, adding that he spent the whole day in court, besides listening to Pawar's testimony before the Commission.

The next time he met Bhujbal was on July 8, he says, at Kalaghoda where the latter was leading a morcha, again to to return home the same evening.

Bhujbal again denies that he led any morcha on July 8. "Around the time that Gupta claims he met me, I was attending proceedings in the Legislative Council," he said. His morcha was the next day, July 9. "Besides, the morcha on July 8 was led by the Brihanmumbai Regional Congress Committee chairperson Murli Deora and it was halted at Hotel Samrat, and not Kalaghoda. I was not part of that procession and neither joined nor addressed it at any point."

Referring to Gupta's statement that he asked the latter to use his car and chauffeur to drive past the Ambedkar statue and presented him with a garland of shoes for the desecration, with all his pugnacity to the fore, arms akimbo and pauses for dramatic effect, Bhujbal said, "The car should be mine, the chauffeur should be mine and I should also give him a readymade garland of chappals! Then why, at all, would I have needed him?"

He said he did not remember Gupta off-hand by name. However, it was possible that a photograph could help him recall the man to mind, as there were many people who came to meet him with petitions and requests. However, to state that Gupta was close to Bhujbal and had quit the Sena to join the Congress along with him, was a travesty of the truth because there was no such close supporter or worker that he could bring to mind.

"This is a conspiracy by the Shiv Sena to despoil my relations with Dalits and create another law and order situation in Maharashtra. If Shiv Sainiks could obey the Sena chief in ransacking my house, if they could then surrender before the police and ask to be arrested under Section 307 on request from Thackeray, then filing a false affidavit to implicate me is by far a more easier demand to obey for any Shiv Sainik," Bhujbal said.

He called for complete police protection to Gupta, wherever he be. "Otherwise the Shiv Sena might eliminate him and put the blame at my doors," he added.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.