Mumbai: Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) Sanjeev Jaiswal’s threat during a public meeting to check the identity documents of a man sporting a beard and his reference to the man as a ‘ghuskhor’ or bribe-taker has evoked sharp reactions from politicians across the ruling and opposition parties.
The BJP, which heads the Mahayuti government in the state, has said that Jaiswal must apologise before the people of Motilal Nagar, where he made the comments. The Congress has, however, alleged that bureaucrats have started toeing the government line against a section of the society, referring to the BJP’s alleged use of the infiltrator tag to target Muslims in poll-bound states such as West Bengal.
The Mhada CEO, who hails from Bengal, made the comments during a public meeting at the Ganesh ground in Motilal Nagar 1 on April 17. The meeting, which HT attended, was focussed on unveiling the master plan for the redevelopment of Motilal Nagar, and many from the 3,702 families which are eligible for rehabilitation homes at the site were seated in the audience.
As soon as Jaiswal announced that residents would get 1,600-square feet (sqft) RERA carpet area homes instead of homes with 1,600 sqft built-up area, as planned earlier, the audience erupted in protest, saying they wanted 2,400-sqft homes. Many audience members held up placards saying no to 1,600-sqft homes; others stood up repeatedly from their seats, in a bid to speak out aloud about their demands, making Jaiswal lose his calm on at least two occasions.
On one occasion, the Mhada CEO said, “This is not the way. You don’t represent everyone. Are you representing 3,000 people? If you say yes, I will move away from here.”
On another occasion, when one of the attendees stood up to speak, Jaiswal reprimanded him, saying he hadn’t been brought up well in his childhood or taught discipline. He also threatened to cancel the tender for the redevelopment project and initiate a survey the very next day, though he did not clarify what the survey would be about.
Later, Jaiswal verbally attacked another Motilal Nagar 1 resident, who was standing up with a placard saying no to 1,600-sqft rehabilitation homes.
“Whatever you want to say, say it in Marathi,” Jaiswal told him.
When the man, sporting a beard, smilingly replied that he wouldn’t be able to speak in Marathi, Jaiswal asked, “Do you really don’t know Marathi?”
He then launched into a tirade, wondering if the man was a ‘ghuskhor’ and asking police officials to seize his identity cards. Videos of the altercation circulating on social media show Jaiswal addressing the man, saying, “Hand over your i-card. Let me find out about you. Where you came from? Which year you came in? Whether you were born here or not. Let me find out all of that. If you turn out to be a ghuskhor, I will pick you up from here itself.”
Like on other occasions when Jaiswal lost his calm, the chief officer of Mhada’s Mumbai board stood up to calm down his boss while numerous attendees also stood up from their seats in protest, saying they did not need to prove that they were Indian citizens.
The man who was targetted, in his 30s, told HT that he had been living in Motilal Nagar since his childhood.
“I am a law abiding citizen and all I did was show a placard saying we need at least 2,400-sqft homes,” he said.
Nilesh Prabhu, joint secretary of the Motilal Nagar Vikas Samiti condemned Jaiswal’s comments and tried to file a criminal complaint against him. But Suryakant Kharat, senior inspector at the Goregaon police station, declined to file an FIR in the absence of a written complaint.
Congress leader Yuvraj Mohite said Jaiswal’s statements were unlike a bureaucrat speaking at a public forum, while BJP leader and legislator Pravin Darekar said the officer should tender an apology.
“Bureaucrats should refrain from such types of acts. Jaiswal is not a master, but a bureaucrat who is expected to work in public interest. He should apologise before the people of Motilal Nagar,” Darekar said.
Maharashtra Congress general secretary Sachin Sawant accused bureaucrats of toeing the government line in targeting a section of the society.
“They do not hesitate to cross their brief. Jaisawal should work and speak in the interest of the people and not the developer of the project. He can’t act like a king,” Sawant said.