Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut accused the Maharashtra government of manipulating the legal system to prevent the bandh organised by the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in response to the Badlapur sexual assault case, on Saturday.
Raut claimed that the bandh, which was backed by MVA partners, would have been overwhelmingly successful and could have posed significant problems for the BJP-led Mahayuti government.
On Friday, the Bombay High Court issued an injunction preventing political parties or individuals from holding a bandh on August 24 or any future date in connection with the Badlapur school sexual assault case.
Raut alleged that the government had utilised its “favourite petitioner” to file the court petition against the bandh, referring specifically to activist and lawyer Gunaratna Sadavarte.
He questioned the state of democracy in the country if dissenting voices were to be suppressed and emphasised that the bandh represented public outrage. Raut stated that any future incidents would be the responsibility of both the court and the petitioner.
The MVA has pledged to comply with the court’s ruling but plans to continue with peaceful demonstrations across the state. The case of alleged sexual abuse involving a male attendant and two 4-year-old girls at a Badlapur school had sparked a large-scale protest in the town earlier in the week.