Mahad poll violence: Sena Minister Gogawale's son surrenders before police

Mumbai: A day after the Bombay High Court came down heavily on the Maharashtra government for failing take action in the Mahad poll violence, Shiv Sena Minister Bharat Gogawale's son Vikas Gogawale surrendered before the police in the case.

The state government on Friday told the court that Vikas Gogawale had turned himself in before the Mahad police in connection with the clash that broke out during the municipal council elections in Raigad district.

The High Court on Thursday ticked off the state government, asking whether the rule of law exists in the state, and if the Chief Minister is too "helpless" to take action against a cabinet minister whose son has evaded arrest for weeks.

Advocate General Milind Sathe on Friday submitted to a single bench of Justice Madhav Jamdar that all the accused in the case, including Vikas Gogawale and his cousin Mahesh Gogawale, surrendered before the Mahad police in the morning.

The court accepted the statement.

Clashes broke out between supporters of Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the NCP, headed by Ajit Pawar, during the civic elections at Mahad in Raigad district on December 2. Both Shinde and Pawar are deputy chief ministers in the BJP-led government.

The two sides lodged complaints against each other, and cross-FIRs were registered.

The court was hearing the pre-arrest bail plea of Shreeyansh Jagtap.

In the previous hearing, the court noted that the offence was serious and hence, it was not inclined to grant anticipatory bail to Shreeyansh Jagtap.

Based on this, Shreeyansh Jagtap on Friday withdrew his application, which the court allowed.

Justice Jamdar, after the hearing, quipped that the issue involved the two deputy chief ministers of Maharashtra.

"Now the police will have to arrest him (Shreeyansh Jagtap) also. Only difference is that he is the son of a former minister," Justice Jamdar said.

Vikas Gogawale and his cousin Mahesh had also sought pre-arrest bail pleas, but they were not granted any relief.

Shreeyansh Jagtap was granted interim protection from arrest in December.

Both Vikas and Mahesh Gogawale had filed applications opposing Jagtap's pre-arrest bail plea.

On Thursday, Justice Jamdar was forthright in his remarks about the failure of law-enforcing authorities to arrest the minister's son, who had been missing since the sessions court rejected his anticipatory bail plea.