Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde told police on Friday that he does not need any special protocol for his convoys in Mumbai and elsewhere in the state.
Shinde gave the directions after discussions with state Director General of Police Rajnish Seth and Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar. According to a statement from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), Shinde has directed that there should be no police arrangement for his convoy, as it causes hardship and delay to the common man.
“This is a common man’s government, so it should get priority over VIPs,” Shinde said, adding that special protocols lead to traffic jams, disrupt the daily routine of citizens and burden the police force.
Earlier, several former corporators of Navi Mumbai and Kalyan Dombivli municipal bodies in Maharashtra’s Thane district had expressed support for Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena faction, a move a day after their Thane counterparts did the same.
An office-bearer of the faction said 40 out of 84 former Shiv Sena corporators in the 122-member Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation and 32 out of 38 former Shiv Sena corporators in the 111-member Navi Mumbai civic body have expressed support for Shinde.
There were 67 Shiv Sena councilors in the Thane Municipal Corporation’s general assembly, whose term ended a few months ago, with 66 saying they are now part of the Shinde faction.
(PTI Input)