The Maharashtra Police have suspended a constable from the state’s Ahmednagar district allegedly for criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a WhatsApp message, PTI reported on Sunday.
Ramesh Shinde, who was posted as a bodyguard for Congress MLA and former minister Balasaheb Thorat, was suspended on Saturday after an investigation by the cyber crime cell of the district police, Ahmednagar Superintendent of Police Ranjankumar Sharma said.
The police added that Shinde had sent such messages “showing political inclination and favouring political persons” earlier, too, according to The Indian Express. “The WhatsApp message he posted is only one of the reasons he was suspended,” Sharma was quoted as saying. The officer did not elaborate on what these political messages were.
An unidentified officer from the Ahmednagar Police said that over 10 days ago, Shinde had sent a “satirical message”, which implied that “Modi is a liar”. A few people had filed a complaint against the constable and also wrote to the superintendent of police and the Prime Minister’s Office, the officer added.
Another unidentified official, reportedly close to Shinde, was quoted as saying that the constable did not send the message, but his nephew did. “The complainant had previous enmity with the constable’s family over other issues in the village,” he claimed, adding that the complaint was an attempt to take revenge.
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