A dramatic standoff unfolded late Thursday night in the heart of Mumbai, as NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) MLA Rohit Pawar confronted the Mumbai Police over the sudden and unexplained detention of party worker Nitin Deshmukh, sparking concerns over rising political pressure on law enforcement.
The uproar began earlier in the day inside the Maharashtra Assembly, where Deshmukh – a close aide of senior NCP (SP) leader Jitendra Awhad – was allegedly assaulted during a clash with BJP MLA Gopichand Padalkar’s supporters. Tensions quickly escalated as news spread that Deshmukh had been taken away by police under unclear circumstances.
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With no official update on Deshmukh’s whereabouts for hours, Rohit Pawar took matters into his own hands. Leading a night-long search across multiple police stations, he and a group of supporters finally reached Azad Maidan Police Station, where Pawar confronted a sub-inspector over the lack of transparency. A video of the heated exchange surfaced online, showing Pawar stating firmly:
“Lower your voice. If you can’t answer respectfully, don’t speak at all.”
The video has since gone viral, drawing sharp public reactions. Speaking to the media, Pawar said the incident highlights the misuse of authority.
“If police officers can behave so rudely with elected representatives, imagine their treatment of ordinary citizens,” he said. “They might slap someone without a second thought.”
He went on to question the deliberate delay and secrecy surrounding Deshmukh’s detention:
“It took five minutes to get the information once we reached the right station. Then why keep us in the dark for over four hours?”
Pawar also suggested that the police were under political pressure, saying:
“At 2 AM, we heard calls being made to senior officers. All they were saying was ‘Yes Sir, Yes Sir’. Is this the system we’ve come to accept in a democracy?”
Senior police officials eventually intervened to calm the situation. Meanwhile, opposition parties are demanding a formal explanation and an internal inquiry into the police’s conduct.
