The Maharashtra Congress has demanded a formal explanation from Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Vijay Wadettiwar over the passage of the controversial Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill, 2024, without the party’s protest in the state assembly last week.
According to sources, state Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal sent a letter to Wadettiwar on Monday, seeking clarity on why the party failed to oppose the bill during its passage in the assembly. The move reportedly comes at the behest of the party high command, which had earlier directed its leaders to oppose the bill.
Despite pre-circulated speaking points to all Congress MLAs ahead of the bill’s discussion on July 10, Wadettiwar was reportedly absent from the House, sources said. While the party’s MLCs raised objections and staged a walkout in the Legislative Council the following day, the absence of protest in the assembly has sparked internal backlash.
The Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill, 2024, which aims to curb activities linked to Left-wing extremism with a special focus on ‘urban Naxalism’, includes stringent provisions such as fines and imprisonment of up to seven years. The bill has come under fire from civil society and opposition parties, who argue that it poses a threat to civil liberties and could be used to suppress dissent under the guise of national security.
During an earlier meeting on June 30, chaired by AICC’s Maharashtra in-charge Ramesh Chennithala, Congress had reportedly resolved to oppose the bill. However, in the assembly, only the lone CPI (M) MLA raised a voice against it.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Bhaskar Jadhav criticized the bill on Wednesday, calling it “harsher than British-era laws” and slammed the Mahayuti government for pushing such legislation without offering any data to justify its necessity.
