Shiv Sena has suspended seven Palghar office-bearers following an alleged assault and intimidation incident at a private hospital during treatment of injured dahi handi participants, according to a party statement reported by Loksatta. The suspended leaders include district chief Kundan Sankhe, city chief Rahul Gharat and Rohit Gavit, son of legislator Rajendra Gavit.
The incident reportedly took place in the early hours of September 6 at Relief Hospital in Palghar city, after injured govindas from a dahi handi event were admitted for treatment. A dispute allegedly arose over medical examination and treatment charges. According to the report, local Shiv Sena office-bearers visited the hospital, abused doctors and staff, threatened to damage the facility and assaulted a hospital employee.
The reported incident was captured on the hospital’s closed-circuit television cameras. The account also states that patients were allegedly made to leave the intensive care unit during the confrontation. The allegations have not been independently established in the material supplied for this report, but a police case has been registered in connection with the incident.
Palghar police have booked the accused under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, as well as the Maharashtra Medicare Service-Persons and Medicare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage or Loss to Property) Act, 2010. The report states that the suspects appeared at the police station on Monday and that city chief Rahul Gharat was arrested.
Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief leader Eknath Shinde had earlier said that the party would not support violence against doctors or hospital employees. Speaking to reporters after a meeting of the western regional council in Goa on September 7, Shinde described the Palghar incident as unfortunate and said that any grievance concerning a patient should have been taken through a legal complaint rather than through violence or intimidation.
Shinde also said that Gharat would be suspended and removed from the party. The subsequent disciplinary action, announced by party secretary Sanjay Bhaurao More after a report from the party’s disciplinary committee, extended to six other office-bearers.
Those suspended are Kundan Balkrishna Sankhe, district chief; Rahul Ramdas Gharat, city chief; Manish alias Vicky Sankhe, deputy taluka chief; Sairaj Patil, district chief of Yuva Sena; Rohit Gavit, deputy taluka chief of Yuva Sena; Rahul Sankhe, deputy taluka chief; and Rishabh Ware, assembly constituency chief of Yuva Sena.
The police investigation and legal proceedings will determine the allegations against the accused. The party’s suspension action follows the registration of the case and the reported arrest of Gharat.
