The whole country maybe outraged over the arrest of two girls over a Facebook post, but that has not deterred the Mumbai Police one bit. A teenager was detained for questioning on Wednesday at Palghar in neighbouring Thane district for posting ‘vulgar’ comments against MNS chief Raj Thackeray and the people of Maharashtra on Facebook, police said. ‘We have received a complaint against a person that he posted some objectionable comments against Raj Thackeray on Facebook. We are questioning him as we do not want to repeat the same mistakes committed a few days ago,’ an officer at Palghar police station said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The boy has not been charged and police have sought legal opinion, he said.
Meanwhile, Kundan Sankhe, president of Thane rural unit of the MNS, has claimed the boy had made ‘vulgar’ comments about Raj Thackeray, and the people of Maharashtra, including women. ‘Our Thane rural district MNS student wing president Bhavish complained to police and asked them to investigate the matter. Police are questioning that person,’ he said. The incident comes close on the heels of the arrest of two girls at Palghar after one of them criticised the 18 November shutdown for Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray’s funeral and the other ‘liked’ the Facebook post, causing an outrage. SP (Thane rural) Ravindra Sengaonkar and senior police inspector Shrikant Pingle were suspended for the arrest of the girls, though charges against them are yet to be dropped.
The detained teenager has been identified as Sunil Vishwakarma (19). ‘My brother is innocent. He told me that his account might have been hacked and objectionable comments may have been posted,’ Sunil’s brother Ramji Vishwakarma said.
When MNS workers approached Sunil, alleging that his FB account contained comments against Raj Thackeray, he cooperated and went to the police station along with them, Ramji said.
The boy has not been charged and police have sought legal opinion, he said.
Meanwhile, Kundan Sankhe, president of Thane rural unit of the MNS, has claimed the boy had made ‘vulgar’ comments about Raj Thackeray, and the people of Maharashtra, including women. ‘Our Thane rural district MNS student wing president Bhavish complained to police and asked them to investigate the matter. Police are questioning that person,’ he said. The incident comes close on the heels of the arrest of two girls at Palghar after one of them criticised the 18 November shutdown for Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray’s funeral and the other ‘liked’ the Facebook post, causing an outrage. SP (Thane rural) Ravindra Sengaonkar and senior police inspector Shrikant Pingle were suspended for the arrest of the girls, though charges against them are yet to be dropped.
The detained teenager has been identified as Sunil Vishwakarma (19). ‘My brother is innocent. He told me that his account might have been hacked and objectionable comments may have been posted,’ Sunil’s brother Ramji Vishwakarma said.
When MNS workers approached Sunil, alleging that his FB account contained comments against Raj Thackeray, he cooperated and went to the police station along with them, Ramji said.