Threat to Sharad Pawar: Supriya Sule meets Mumbai CP; CM assures on safety

NCP leader Supriya Sule has said that she received threatening messages from a website for her father and party chief Sharad Pawar. Chief Minister Ekanth Shinde says his government has taken a serious note and assured safety.

Mumbai (Maharashtra): Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Member of Parliament (MP) Suriya Sule, who is the daughter of party chief Sharad Pawar on Friday claimed that her father was threatened through a website. Sule revealed that she has received a threatening message on her personal WhatsApp.

Showing printouts of the messages, Sule, who represents Baramati in the Lok Sabha told reporters here, "I received a message on WhatsApp for Pawar Sahab. He has been threatened through a website. A similar threat has come from related accounts".

The 53-year-old Pune-born Sule, who met Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar, said she was seeking justice. She also urged Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who is in charge of the Home Department, and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to look into the matter. Sule also submitted printouts of the screenshots of the threat to the police. "So, I have come to the police demanding justice. I urge Maharashtra Home Minister and Union Home Minister. Such actions are low-level politics and this should stop," added Sule.

Officials of the Mumbai Police said that they are in the process of registering a First Information Report (FIR) in this regard at the South Cyber Police Station in the city. In the past too, Sharad Pawar, who has held numerous positions at the Centre and in Maharashtra government, had received death threats.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut has also claimed that he has been receiving "death threats" for the past couple of days. In a letter sent to Devendra Fadnavis, Raut said, "For the past two days, I have been receiving constant death threats. Similar calls are also coming to my brother and state Legislative Assembly member Sunil Raut. Stop talking against the government of Maharashtra or else we will be beaten to death – this is the gist of the threat,” the Rajya Sabha member said. He also sent the letter to Mumbai Police Commissioner.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has said that his government has taken serious note of the threat received by Sharad Pawar. "The government has taken serious note of the threat received by senior leader Sharad Pawar and I have personally spoken to senior police officers and have given instructions for investigation. Sharad Pawar is a senior leader and we all respect him. His safety will be fully taken care of. Instructions have been given to the police to increase security if necessary," Shinde said in a Tweet.

Earlier, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also had assured that the police will take strict action as per the law. “Maharashtra politics has a high tradition. Although there are differences at the political level there are no differences of opinion. Threatening any leader or overstepping the bounds of civility while expressing themselves on social media will not be tolerated. In such a case the police will definitely take action as per law,” Fadnavis was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.