Even as the Assembly polls in Maharashtra are just a couple of weeks away, the issue of felling trees at Aarey Colony in north Mumbai has become the latest flashpoint between the saffron allies—Shiv Sena and BJP.
Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday extended his support to the protesting activists and promised to take action against those responsible for felling trees, if voted to power.
“The upcoming government will be our government, and once we come to power once again, we will deal with the murderers of Aarey forest in the best possible manner," Thackeray tweeted.
His comments came even as BJP leader and Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar defended the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (MMRCL)'s action of chopping 2,656 trees in the area to make way for a proposed metro car shed.
"Basically the Bombay High Court has decided and ruled yesterday that it is not a forest," Javadekar told reporters. "You can't fell anything that is forest."
Meanwhile, the green activists suffered a second jolt in two consecutive days when the high court on Saturday refused to stay ongoing felling of trees.
Drawing a parallel, the Union minister said trees had to be cut for Delhi Metro also and it was opposed by activists even then.
Earlier, clashes broke out between the police and green activists in the area, leading to the arrest of at least 29 persons.
The police on Saturday imposed section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code in Aarey, restricting movements and gathering of groups, and cordoned off the area.
Several people were detained, including NCP MLA Jitendra Awhad, Shiv Sena leader Priyanka Chaturvedi, sena leader and fomer Mayor Shubha Raul, at the site.
At least 38 protesters were booked under IPC sections 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharging duty), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from duty) and 143 (unlawful assembly).
Aaditya Thackeray, who is contesting the assembly election from Worli in south-central Mumbai, extended his support to the protesters.
"The vigour with which the Mumbai metro 3 is slyly and swiftly cutting down an ecosystem in aarey is shameful and disgusting. How about posting these officials in POK (Pak Occupied Kashmir) giving them charge to destroy terror camps rather than trees?" he asked.
With inputs from PTI
