The opposition had accused Mr Pawar of threatening a police officer.
- The Maharashtra deputy chief minister said he has the highest respect for the police force and its officers
- The intention, he said, was to prevent the situation from escalating
- The opposition had accused Mr Pawar of threatening a police officer
Following a controversy over him "threatening" a woman police officer who was cracking down on illegal excavation in Maharashtra's Solapur, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has said he was only trying to prevent an escalation in the situation on the ground and that he had no intention of "interfering" with law enforcement.
In a video that had gone viral, Mr Pawar, who is also president of the NCP, is heard speaking to Anjana Krishna, a sub-divisional police officer in Solapur's Karmala, who was stopping the illegal excavation of 'murrum' - a substance used in road construction - in Kurdu village.
Ms Krishna, who is originally from Kerala and was posted to Maharashtra recently, was handed a phone by an NCP worker and told Mr Pawar was on the line. The officer did not recognise Mr Pawar's voice and asked him to call her on her cellphone.
"Mai tere upar action lunga (I will act against you)," Mr Pawar tells Ms Krishna, "Tujhe mujhe dekhna hai na? Tera number de do ya WhatsApp call karo. Mera chehra toh aapko samajh mein aaega na? (You want to see me, right? Give me your number or call me on WhatsApp. You will recognise my face, right?)," he is heard telling her.
"Itna aapko daring hua hai kya (how dare you?)," he asked the officer, before video calling her and allegedly asking her to stop the action she was taking.
The opposition hit out at Mr Pawar and accused him of threatening a police officer as well as protecting "thieves" in his party.
"You are threatening an IPS officer. He is heard saying that he will not tolerate indiscipline. Then what is this? That too, to protect the thieves of his own party. Mr Pawar, where is your sense of discipline? Illegal excavation of 'murrum' means defrauding the state's treasury and you are the finance minister. Yet you did it," Shiv Sena (Udhhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut said on Friday.
'Highest Respect'
As the issue began to snowball, Mr Pawar took to X on Friday afternoon and issued a clarification. He remains committed, he said, to ensuring transparency and stopping all illegal activities.
"My attention has been drawn to certain videos circulating regarding my interaction with police officials in Solapur. Let me state clearly that my intention was not to interfere with law enforcement but to ensure that the situation on the ground remained calm and did not escalate further," he wrote.
"I have the highest respect for our police force and its officers, including the women officers who serve with distinction and courage and I value the rule of law above all. I remain firmly committed to transparent governance and to ensuring that every illegal activity, including sand mining, is dealt with strictly as per the law," the deputy chief minister added.
NCP MP Sunil Tatkare had also said Mr Pawar may have spoken to the officer to placate party workers.
"He may have chided the IPS officer to placate party workers. He didn't mean to stop the action completely," Mr Tatkare said.
