44 persons arrested over clashes between rival parties in Thane's Bhiwandi town

Police have arrested 44 persons and registered five cases in connection with clashes allegedly between supporters of a BJP MLA and a local outfit leader in Bhiwandi town of Maharashtra's Thane district, officials said on Tuesday.

The clashes erupted late Sunday night following the recently concluded Bhiwandi Nizampur Municipal Corporation elections.

At around 8 pm on Sunday, the bungalow of former mayors and Konark Vikas Aghadi functionaries, Vilas Patil and his wife Pratibha Patil, was allegedly attacked and vandalised by a crowd. Several people, including the couple and their family members, were injured, according to the police.

In retaliation, supporters of Vilas Patil allegedly hurled stones and ransacked the office of BJP MLA Mahesh Chaugule in the Shivaji Chowk area of Bhiwandi, forcing police to resort to a lathi charge to restore order, they said. Based on complaints from both sides, five cases were registered on Monday against several persons, Deputy Commissioner of Police Shashikant Borate said.

So far, 44 persons have been arrested, a police official said, adding that five cases have been registered against 60 identified and more than 500 unidentified people.

Thane Joint Commissioner of Police Dr Gyaneshwar Chavan visited Bhiwandi on Monday and reviewed the situation. He held a meeting with senior police officials and said strict action would be taken against anyone attempting to disturb public peace.

''Violence over victory or defeat in elections is unacceptable. Public representatives have been elected for development, not for spreading anarchy,'' he said.

He directed senior police officers to intensify patrolling and conduct route marches in sensitive wards, take action against establishments operating after permissible hours, and ensure strict enforcement of preventive measures.

Heavy security has been deployed in the town and forensic teams are collecting evidence.

Some advocates from the Bhiwandi Bar Association visited the residence of Vilas Patil, who is also a lawyer, and expressed solidarity with him and his family.

Police said the rivalry has its roots in the last state assembly elections and intensified during the recent municipal corporation polls, where the panel led by Vilas Patil of the Konark Vikas Aghadi faced the panel of Meet Chaugule, son of BJP MLA Mahesh Chaugule, in ward no. 1. In the January 15 elections to the 90-member Bhiwandi Nizampur Municipal Corporation, the Congress secured 30 seats, the BJP 22, while the KVA managed to get only 4 seats.

The Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde and Sharad Pawar's NCP (SP) bagged 12 seats each, Samajwadi Party 6, Bhiwandi Vikas Aghadi (Ekta Manch) 3, while an independent got 1 seat.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)