9.6.14

Of Violent crowds @ Munde's funeral....

Police had to resort to lathi-charge at Gopinath Munde's funeral on Wednesday as five lakh people converged on the outskirts of Parli in Maharashtra's Beed district to bid farewell to the Union rural development minister.
The crowds broke through barricades and stoned CM Prithviraj Chavan's vehicle, demanding a CBI probe into the car accident that killed the veteran BJP leader in New Delhi on Tuesday. They were finally pacified after leaders promised to convey the supporters' wishes to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Streams of people began gathering at the sprawling yard of the Vaidyanath co-operative sugar factory outside Parli from early morning. As the mercury soared to 42 degree Celsius, the chants for a CBI probe got louder in the hours preceding the last rites.
“How could he die? He had survived bigger accidents in the past,” said a villager. The crowds encircled state ministers Rajendra Darda, Harshavardhan Patil and Rajesh Tope, and later set a police van on fire. The brunt of the violence was borne by the police, with the stone-pelting leaving as many as 50 cops injured, 12 seriously.
It finally fell on Munde's daughter, Pankaja, and state BJP chief Devendra Fadnavis to pacify the irate villagers.“I will convey your feelings to the PM and home minister Rajnath Singh and urge them to conduct an inquiry,“ said Fadnavis. The crowd responded with slogans of `Munde amar rahe'.
The supporters' call for a CBI investigation was echoed by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, who attended the funeral, and Republican Party of India (A) leader Ramdas Athavale. “The government must make a note of the sentiments of the people of Beed,“ Uddhav told mediapersons in Parli. As soon as Munde's body was brought to the ground around 12.20 pm, the crowds became impatient. The rush to catch a glimpse of him brought down a pandal.

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