Mumbai:
Maharashtra witnessed violence since Sunday evening as MNS workers went on a rampage following an order from their boss Raj Thackeray.
"I am ordering my workers to ensure that no toll tax is charged at any booth in Maharashtra. If anyone asks for toll tax, then
phod dijiye, pitiye (attack, thrash them), whatever be the consequences," Mr Thackeray said on Sunday.
The police say since yesterday, MNS workers have rampaged through toll booths in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Kalyan, Aurangabad, Nagpur and Nashik, in a repeat of the party's agitation last year.
"We are not anarchists. We were forced to take the law into our hands for public good. Our agitation will continue till the state becomes toll-free," said Akhilesh Chaubey, head of MNS' legal cell.
Across Maharashtra, nearly hundred people have been arrested and more than 10 cases have been registered. More than 30 MNS workers have been arrested in Mumbai alone.
Additional security has been provided at all such booths and the police are on special alert for trouble.
"The system took time to respond but calm has been restored now," Jitendra Ahwad, the Working President of the NCP told NDTV.
Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has warned of strict action against those behind the violence, asserting that toll tax was "very important for development." But even Mr Pawar's NCP and its partner Congress have joined protests in Sangli against toll tax, which impacts a vast swathe of voters in the state.
Mr Thackeray has accused contractors of overcharging citizens without repairing potholed roads or providing amenities, even after recovering the construction cost.
The contractors deny it. "Toll tariff, location and time period have been decided by Supreme Court," said Jayant Mhaiskar, managing director, MEP Infrastructure Developers.
Commuters however say the process of toll collection and awarding contracts is not transparent. In Maharashtra the distance between two toll booths are sometimes 30 km which is much less than the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) mandated figure 8O km. In many places roads are poorly maintained in spite of collecting a high amount of toll.
Mumbai has five entry points, which generate an estimated Rs.2 billion a year from toll collection and are a major source of revenue for the state government.