A court in Maharastra Thursday sent Congress minister Yashomati Thakur to three months of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 15,500 in an 8-year-old cop assault case. The Congress leader is the Minister of Women and Child Development since 2019 in the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra.
Thakur, her driver and two workers have been held guilty of beating up an on-duty policeman who stopped her vehicle on a one-way lane. The incident had taken place around 4.15 pm on March 24, 2012, in the Chunabhatti area under Rajapeth police station in Amravati district, informed the prosecution.
Along with Congress minister Yashomati Thakur, her driver and two other aides also sent to jail
Along with the cabinet minister, three others have also convicted in the case which includes the Congress leader’s driver. They too have been awarded three months a rigerous imprisionment by the district and sessions court here on Thursday. They were also fined Rs 15,500 each by the district and sessions court judge Urmila Joshi, who also said that Thakur and the three others who have been convicted would have to spent one month extra in jail if they fail to pay the fine.
Reportedly, Judge Joshi examined five witnesses in the case and one of them, a cop, turned hostile during the trial. Accepting the deposition of the witnesses and arguments of the prosecution, the district and sessions court judge found all the four accused guilty.
While sending the four to jail, the court directed the city police commissioner to take action against the cop who turned hostile.
Congress Minister Yashomati Thakur said she challenge the district and sessions court’s verdict in Bombay HC
Reacting to the verdict the Congress leader, who is also guardian minister of Amravati district, said she will move the Bombay High Court against the lower court’s verdict. “I have always respected the judiciary as I am myself a lawyer. As such, it will not be proper for me to comment upon the judgement. But we are going to move to the High Court for justice. I can only say at this moment that truth shall prevail,” said Thakur.
The 2012 incident
According to the charge sheet, Thakur, her driver Sagar Suresh Khandekar, workers Sharad Kashirav Jawanjal and Raju Kisan Ingle had allegedly beaten up traffic policeman Ulhas Raurale, when he had tried to stop the minister car from entering a one-way lane.
When the on-duty traffic police officer had stopped the Congress minister and told her that her vehicle could not use the road stretch as it was for one-way traffic and the car was entering from the wrong side, the minister along with her aides had got into an argument with Raurale. They allegedly held him by the collar and beat him up, the prosecution said.
Raurale had lodged a complaint with the Rajapeth police station against the cabinet minister her driver and two others. A case was registered under IPC sections 353 (assault on or use of criminal force against a public servant in order to deter him from discharging his duty), 332 (causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 186 (obstructing any public servant in discharge of his public functions and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) against the four.
Congress Minister’s past controversies
The Congress minister, who had last year, stirred up a controversy by saying that she has just become a minister after her party managed to form a government in Maharashtra and they are ‘yet to warm their pockets’, was also caught on July 20, 2019, creating a ruckus at a hospital. Before the Maha Vikas Aghadi govt came to power in Maharashtra, she had once been recorded on camera screaming, abusing and threatening a cop at the St George Hospital. “Paise khate ho saale Haramkhor“, she was heard yelling as she manhandled the hospital staff who tried to pacify her.
