Loudspeaker row: Mumbai police issue notices to 100 people, including MNS leaders

Mumbai: The Mumbai police have issued notices to at least 100 people, including MNS leaders Nitin Sardesai and Bala Nandgaonkar, under section 149 of the CrPC for preventing cognizable offences, an official said on Tuesday.

The move comes after MNS chief Raj Thackeray at a rally in Maharashtra’s Aurangabad city on May 1 asked people to play Hanuman Chalisa outside mosques from May 4 if loudspeakers there were not removed.

According to the office of the Maharashtra director general of police (DGP), preventive action has so far been taken against more than 15,000 people in the state under various sections of the CrPC and the Maharashtra Police Act.

The DGP’s office also said that notices under CrPC section 149 were issued against 13,054 people across the state, including MNS workers.

Considering the law and order situation in the state capital Mumbai, the city police have issued notices under the CrPC section 149 to at least 100 people under zone 5, which includes Dadar, Matunga, Shivaji Park and Dharavi areas.

The Shivaji Park police issued notices to 12 people, including MNS functionaries Nitin Sardesai, Bala Nandgaokar, Sandeep Deshpande, Sukumar Killedar and others. Besides, 15 people were issued notices in Dadar area, the official said. The central Mumbai is considered a stronghold of the MNS, and police are taking all precautions to avoid any untoward situation in the area, he said.