A video of Shiv Sena MLA from Buldhana, Sanjay Gaikwad, thrashing a youth with a stick has gone viral, inviting sharp criticism from the opposition which claimed the law and order situation is deteriorating in the state.
Mr. Gaikwad said he beat up the youth as the latter was part of an anti-social gang and had hit a policeman.
The incident occurred on February 19 during Shiv Jayanti celebrations, he said.
"(It is observed that) A gang of youth consumes alcohol and drugs and attacks people, especially women, during events like Shiv Jayanti and Ambedkar Jayanti," the Buldhana MLA said.
When people brought the illegal act to my notice, I told the police but the gang also attacked a police personnel, he claimed.
"The police personnel fell on the ground in the attack after which I intervened," Mr. Gaikwad said.
Latching on the video, the leader of the opposition in the assembly, Vijay Wadettiwar, said the "goon" attacking a youth is an MLA of the faction led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and questioned the law and order situation in the state.
The Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) also raised concerns over the law and order situation when ruling party MLAs resort to such an act.
Mr. Gaikwad is, however, not new to controversies.
Mr. Gaikwad had last month claimed that he had hunted a tiger in 1987 and has been wearing its tooth around his neck, following which the state Forest department seized the accessory and booked him under the Wildlife Protection Act.
