‘Rane’s slap remark not concrete, immediate threat’

A court in Raigad district has discharged Union minister Narayan Rane in a case involving a statement made in 2021 about slapping Uddhav Thackeray the thenchief minister A detailed version of the verdict was uploaded on the courts website on MondayThe court said the statement did not amount to criminal intimidation but observed that it was politically insensitive and such remarks were not expected from someone holding the post of Union minister Rane at a press conference against Thackeray had stated ldquoMi asto tar kanakhalich chadhavli asti If it was me I would have slapped himrdquoIt was alleged by the prosecution that Ranes statement was published in various newspapers and video clips of the same were circulated on different platforms causing a disturbance to public tranquillity and resulting in violence The accused was booked by the Raigad police and charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code Rane was arrested and later granted bail by the courtChief Judicial Magistrate S W Ugale of Alibaug in Raigad said ldquoThe alleged threat lsquoMi asto tar kanakhalich chadavli astirsquo is not a concrete or immediate threat in the form of criminal intimidation Threats under the guise of ifrsquo and lsquothenrsquo do not fall under this section lsquoI will slap himrsquo or lsquoam going to slap himrsquo may be considered as an immediate threat and fall under the terminology of criminal intimidation but not the socalled threat in the form of if and lsquothenrsquordquo The court order further stated ldquoThe statement made by the accused can be termed controversial and politically insensitive which is not expected from a person who holds the post of a Union ministerrdquoAlso read Opposition leaders are being harassed raided and arrested Uddhav Thackeray targets BJPThe court also noted that the remarks were made by Rane to the thenchief minister but the latter didnt complain and a local resident in Mahad had filed the complaint It stated ldquoThe person who has occupied the post of the chief minister will not break public peace or commit any offence nor is there a case of the prosecution that the insulted person has caused a breach of public peace or can commit any offence Therefore the informant is not the person who has been insulted and provoked to breach public peace or to commit an offence resulting in not being an aggrieved person within the meaning of Section 504 of IPCrdquoThe order further reads ldquoThe issue pertains to a question being asked to Thackeray about Indian Independence and Rane claimed that Thackeray did not know and it was shameful Rane then said that had he been at the venue he would have slapped Thackeray The complaint was filed in Mahad Raigad district of Maharashtra by a resident under Sections 153A 1b promoting enmity between different groups 5052 statements conducive to public mischief 504 intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace and 506 criminal intimidation of the Indian Penal Coderdquo The court in its order also said that Section 153A was wrongly added to the FIR ldquoWhatever finds in the charge sheet and documents submitted along with it shall be taken into consideration at face value without stretching the imagination So there is no targeted and nontargeted group or community in the words spoken by the accused The very basic requirement to attract the offences punishable under section 153A and 5052 of the IPC is missingrdquo2021Year statement was made