Mumbai, Jan 18
The Shiv Sena UBT mouthpiece Saamana in its editorial on Saturday said that the brutal attack on Bollywood superstar Saif Ali Khan has not just exposed the deteriorating law and order situation but also shown how Mumbai is becoming unsafe by the day.
“The attack on the Padma Shri awardee, who is not just an actor but a son of cricket doyen Mansoor Ali Pataudi and also leading actress Sharmila Tagore, is not just shocking but highly mysterious.
“What is more, the manner in which the attacker breached the security system and ran away after attacking Saif Ali Khan is further increasing the suspense in the entire case,” the editorial said.
It also raised serious doubts over the efficiency of the Mumbai Police, considered as one of the best and often compared to Scotland Yard.
After the Opposition raised serious questions on Mumbai’s safety, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis lectured them not to defame Mumbai assuring that no one will be spared as the police are investigating the case.
“What is happening in Mumbai is not good. An accused of bank fraud and other crimes comes to Fadnavis' 'Sagar' bungalow and lifts him on his shoulders in celebration of the victory of the MahaYuti. Fadnavis feeds him sweets.
“The same criminal talks about picking up a Marathi man named Gajabhau, who is active on social media, and Fadnavis pretends as if nothing has happened.
“In Beed, people come out on the streets in support of the accused and the mastermind of the murder of that sarpanch, Deshmukh sits in the Cabinet, like there is no fear of law,” says the editorial.
“Baba Siddique was murdered on the streets of Mumbai. Rape and Koita (sickle) gang terrorised the people of Pune. Cases of sexual harassment have increased in Nagpur. Seeing all this, doesn't the home minister inside Fadnavis wake up?” it asks.
“What happened in Saif's case is happening every day in Mumbai, but since Saif is an actor and Taimur's father, the knife of this incident pierced everyone's heart.
“About a fortnight ago, the Kapoor family and their son-in-law Saif met and talked to Prime Minister Modi. PM Modi made special enquiries about Taimur. Saif was happy to meet Modi, but within 15 days, Saif was attacked.
“Is someone trying to terrorise the film industry of Mumbai? Or was the attack on Saif due to personal reasons?
“The BJP leaders were already attacking Saif for 'love jihad', but as soon as the Prime Minister himself blessed Saif, Kareena and Taimur, 'love jihad' turned into a happy outcome and Minister Ashish Shelar himself went to the hospital to meet Saif and make everything all right. Because the question is about the safety of Taimur and his father,” reads the editorial.
“The appointments in the Mumbai Police are not made on efficiency criteria but purely based on proximity to the BJP. Due to this the situation in the metropolis is alarming.
“Half of the Mumbai Police force is deployed to protect the legislators and on top of it they are heavily burdened due to the frequent visits of VIPs to the city. The police personnel are left with no leave and rest and it won’t be proper to tell them to protect Mumbai under such conditions,” says the editorial.
“If the Mumbai Police has to improve its functioning and if its morale needs to be increased, the home minister will have to remove the cover of political underworld around him.
“Is Mumbai safe? Let the people understand for once whether the security of Mumbai is at the mercy of God,” the Saamana editorial concluded.
