The Mumbai Police on Saturday arrested MP Navneet Kaur Rana and her husband, MLA Ravi Rana, hours after they cancelled a plan to recite the Hanuman Chalisa outside Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s house, ANI reported.
The police registered a case against Navneet Kaur Rana and Ravi Rana under Section 153A of the Indian Penal Code, which deals with promoting enmity between different groups.
The MP and the MLA were arrested from their home in Mumbai’s Khar area, the police said. The investigation is underway at the local police station.
Earlier this week, Ravi Rana had said that he had asked Thackeray to recite the Hanuman Chalisa on the Hindu festival of Hanuman Jayanti on April 16 to “rid Maharashtra of crises and attain peace for the state”, according to The Times of India. He said he would recite the Hindu prayer outside Matoshree, the residence of the Thackeray family, on Saturday.
On Friday morning, Shiv Sena workers surrounded the couple’s house, and demanded an apology from them, according to PTI. Some of them reportedly broke barricades and tried to enter the house, but the police later brought the situation under control.
Navneet Kaur Rana and Ravi Rana on Saturday said that they had cancelled their plan to recite Hanuman Chalisa as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Mumbai on Sunday.
After their arrest, the couple filed a complaint against Thackeray, Shiv Sena leader Anil Parab and all the party workers who had gathered outside their home.
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