A Minister, A Police Officer and a Plan to Jail Shiv Sena's Founder: The Inside Story

A fresh political controversy has erupted between Maharashtra cabinet minister Chhagan Bhujbal and former IPS officer KP Raghuvanshi over allegations that Bhujbal once pressured police to arrest Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray without sufficient evidence. The dispute stems from claims made in Raghuvanshi’s biography, in which he recounts events from his tenure with the Special Task Force in the late 1990s. Bhujbal has categorically denied the allegations, calling them baseless and politically motivated.

In the book Troubleshooter, Raghuvanshi alleges that Bhujbal sought Thackeray’s arrest to settle personal scores and humiliated him during the process. He claims that legal advisors had cautioned against taking action due to insufficient evidence that would stand judicial scrutiny. According to Raghuvanshi, key witnesses who were reportedly present when Thackeray allegedly issued inflammatory instructions never recorded formal statements, weakening the case and making a conviction unlikely in court.

The controversy is rooted in the aftermath of the 1992-93 Mumbai riots following the demolition of the Babri Masjid. The Maharashtra government had set up the Srikrishna Commission to investigate the violence, and its report held Thackeray responsible for instigating communal unrest, describing him as directing Shiv Sainiks “like a military general". To act on the commission's findings, a special task force led by Raghuvanshi was formed to pursue prosecutions against those indicted.

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Responding to the allegations in Nashik, Bhujbal said that any action against Thackeray was part of implementing the commission's recommendations and not the result of personal pressure. He stated that the file concerning Thackeray had been forwarded by then Mumbai Police Commissioner M.N. Singh and insisted that due legal process had been followed. Bhujbal further claimed that he had instructed authorities not to oppose Thackeray’s bail and to avoid causing him hardship during legal proceedings.

Bhujbal also said that if bail were denied on technical grounds, the government had considered notifying Thackeray’s residence, Matoshree, as a temporary jail to ensure his comfort. Raghuvanshi, however, countered that Bhujbal was conflating two separate cases. He argued that the matter cited by the minister related to alleged inflammatory writings that required government sanction, whereas the Srikrishna Commission-related case did not require forwarding the file to the minister. The renewed exchange has revived debate over the political and legal handling of riot-related prosecutions during the Congress-NCP coalition government’s tenure.

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