Bombay High Court Slaps Rs 2 Lakh Cost on Frivolous Plea Against Uddhav Thackeray

The Bombay High Court's Aurangabad bench has levied a Rs 2 lakh fine on Nanded resident Mohan Chavan for an unsubstantiated plea against Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray. Chavan's complaint, alleging religious sentiments were hurt, was dismissed as an abuse of legal process, and he is ordered to pay Thackeray.

The Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court has imposed a Rs 2 lakh penalty on Mohan Chavan from Nanded for lodging a frivolous petition against Uddhav Thackeray, the chief of Shiv Sena (UBT) and former Maharashtra chief minister.

Chavan, who identifies as a doctor in philosophy and hails from the Banjara community, claimed his religious feelings were offended when Thackeray did not apply sacred ash, given by Chavan's priest, during an event.

Justice S G Mehare noted that even someone with a rudimentary understanding of law would recognize this plea as an abuse of the legal process aimed at gaining notoriety. Dismissing the allegations as groundless, the court ordered Chavan to withdraw the petition and pay the sum within three weeks, warning of stringent action for non-compliance.

(With inputs from agencies.)