The Bombay High Court not only reprimanded Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut for an expletive aimed at actor Kangana Ranaut earlier this year,
But also warned Ms Ranaut from making comments comparing Mumbai to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
High Court has said “Petitioner should show restraint in airing opinions on the government”. The court cautioned the actor, noting: “We do not agree with what she has said”.
HIgh Court did not spare Mr Raut and was criticised for conduct that “does not befit a parliamentarian” as the court said it did not accept his explanation: “… (comment was) in the context of her dishonesty and that… the derogative statement made (by Ms Ranaut) insulting the State of Maharashtra and Mumbai”.
In September Sanjay Raut was caught on camera flinging an abusive term in his tirade against Ms Ranaut. He never apologised for the comment, but told NDTV “I may have made a mistake”.
“Kangana also makes these mistakes, we have seen several times,” he added, referring to Ms Ranaut’s tweet about feeling unsafe in Mumbai.
The court’s observation came as it ruled on a petition by Ms Ranaut against the demolition of her office (located in a bungalow in Mumbai’s posh Pali Hills area) that same month.
Even after the Bombay High Court quashed the demolition notices sent by the BMC and deemed their action against Kangana Ranaut as carried out with malice, and asked BMC to pay compensation for demolishing her office,
Shiv Sena leader and Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar has intensified the attack against the actor, calling her a worthless individual and accusing her of using court’s arena for political rivalry.
Speaking to the media after the Bombay High Court verdict, Pednekar said,
“Everyone is surprised that one naughty (a euphemism for haramkhor as coined by Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut) who lives in Himachal Pradesh, comes here and calls Mumbai as PoK…such ‘do takke ke log’ (people worth two rupees) want to make Courts arena for political rivalry, it’s wrong that such worthless individuals want to turn the judicial courts into a political battlefield.”
The BMC mayor also said that she does not know who Kangana Ranaut is and she never watched her movies.
Rejecting that demolition of Ranaut’s office was an act of revenge, she said, “Action was taken because there was something to it.
I personally didn’t even know who she was. I had never seen her movies simply because there is no time.”
Earlier, after the verdict came out, Pednekar defended the BMC, stating that their actions were pursuant to the municipal rules. She was to hold a meeting with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) legal team to assess Bombay High Court’s order in Kangana Ranaut case.
