Pune, Mar 22 (UNI) Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president, Harshavardhan Sapkal, on Saturday strongly criticised the Mahayuti government, accusing that the government of protecting those who insult Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.

His took aim at the government after Prashant Koratkar, who had been given police protection despite allegedly insulting Shivaji Maharaj, managed to flee from the country.

Talking to media here, he alleged that Koratkar had close ties with IPS officers and the Home Minister, raising suspicions that police deliberately allowed him to flee.

He demanded answers from the government, saying "What was the government doing while Koratkar was escaping? Was the Home Department asleep?"

The Congress state chief said that Rahul Solapurkar, who resides in Pune and also has made offensive remarks against Shivaji Maharaj.

Despite this, Pune’s Police commissioner claims that no case can be filed against him and has instead provided him with police protection, he claimed.

He highlighted multiple instances of law and order failures in the state, raising the issues of rape at Swargate bus stand, brutal murder of a sarpanch in Beed, custodial death of a youth in Parbhani, assault on a central minister’s worker in Pune, harassment of another central minister’s daughter in Jalgaon, forcing the minister to personally visit the police station to file a complaint.

"The police force has lost all its control and authority. The state’s law and order has collapsed, and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is running administration in a dictatorial manner," he said.

Raising concerns about Pune’s growing drug trade, Sapkal demanded to investigate alleged connection between Pune and the drugs arriving from Gujarat’s Kandla port.

The state needs a full-time, capable Home minister, he added.

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