NCP president and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar being slapped by a youth in Delhi sparked strong protests in Pune city with the Mayor appealing people to observe a bandh on Friday. NCP,Congress,Shiv Sena and MNS leaders in the city joined in condemnation of the incident and the MNS called the attack a slap on a son-of the-soil. Mayor Mohansingh Rajpals bandh call saw an impact on Thursday evening itself as normal life was affected with few shops remaining open and most citizens staying indoors. I urge all citizens to observe a bandh. It will be peaceful, said Rajpal as he participated in a protest at Swargate junction and near Abhinav College. He said he would take a round of the city early on Friday morning to ensure the bandh is peaceful. We will seek action against negligence in providing security for the union minister, he said. The NCP president has asked people to exercise restraint and not to react violently,Rajpal said and urged for action against the youth who had slapped the senior minister. As the same youth had attacked former union minister Sukh Ram a few days ago,the mayor raised doubts on security arrangements made for Pawar. The NCP Pimpri-Chinchwad unit also called for a bandh on Friday. NCP city president Vandana Chavan held a protest meet at the party office near Hirabaug. Earlier,Rajpal,who is from the NCP,called a meeting of NCP leaders at the civic headquarters and staged a protest outside the civic headquarters. Congress city unit president Abhay Chhajed said his party condemns the assault and such attacks,which are not good for democracy. Those responsible for such acts should not be glorified, he said,justifying the bandh called by the Mayor. It is obvious citizens would protest against such an attack on the senior political leader, Chhajed said refusing to comment whether the Congress would participate. MNS leader Ravindra Dhangekar said the attack on Pawar is an attack on son-of-the-soil and has hurt Maharashtra. The MNS has been raising the issue of bad treatment to Marathi-speaking population by people of other states, he said. Shiv Sena and BJP condemned the attack and urged citizens to maintain law and order. There are bound to be protests against the attack on a senior political leader from the state. The protests should be peaceful, said a BJP leader. The Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar issued a statement condemning the attack. We urge the government to initiate action against the youth for attacking the minister, the release stated.
