No need for police to wait for formal complaint to probe case of MLA assaulting canteen staffer: CM

Mumbaj: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday said there was no need for the police to wait for a formal complaint to initiate a probe into the incident where Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad assaulted a canteen staffer for serving him "stale food".

The police should probe the case and if it is a cognisable offence, they will take appropriate action, he told reporters on the premises of the Vidhan Bhavan, the state legislature complex, here.

Viral video footage showing Gaikwad slapping and punching an employee at the MLAs' hostel canteen here for serving "stale food" drew widespread condemnation from the government and opposition. In the video, the Buldhana MLA is seen confronting the canteen contractor and forcing him to smell a packet of dal before slapping and punching him.

CM Fadnavis earlier denounced the incident, saying such behaviour sends a "wrong message" about legislators misusing their power. Earlier, Minister of State for Home Yogesh Kadam said the police cannot take any action against Gaikwad as there was no complaint filed against him in this connection.

Kadam and Gaikwad belong to the Shiv Sena led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. When asked about Kadam's statement, Fadnavis said, "The police should conduct an inquiry into the assault. There is no need for a complaint to start the probe. If it is a cognisable offence, the police will take appropriate action."

"One needs to understand that there are some cognisable offences, while some are non-cognisable. The category of an offence is determined on the basis of use of force. Let the police do their job, they will take appropriate action," he said.

Gaikwad had ordered dinner from the Akashwani MLA hostel canteen in south Mumbai on Tuesday night and found the dal and rice delivered to his room to be stale and foul-smelling. Angered by this, he stormed into the canteen to confront the manager. Eyewitnesses corroborated that he became furious and hit a canteen operator during the altercation.

The MLA claimed that by serving such food, the canteen operators were "playing with the lives of people." Despite criticism after the episode, the MLA remained defiant and said his act of assaulting the canteen staffer may have been harsh, but it led to a swift action from the government on the food quality issue despite repeated complaints earlier.

The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday evening suspended the licence of the caterer that operates the canteen, saying violations of the food safety norms were found during an inspection at the facility.