11 July,2025 05:09 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
A video of the incident, which went viral on Wednesday, showed Sanjay Gaikwad, wearing a vest, confronting a canteen staffer and slapping and punching him. Pic/PTI
A non-cognisable offence was being filed against Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad in the MLA hostel canteen worker assault case, Mumbai Police said on Friday, reported the PTI.
"The process to file the offence is underway at the Marine Drive police station," a police official told PTI.
After the incident, which happened on Tuesday night, sparked a furore, the two-time Buldhana MLA refused to express regret and said he would repeat his actions if needed.
In a viral video of the assault, Gaikwad was seen punching and slapping the canteen worker, claiming that he was served stale food.
Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad had on Wednesday faced flak from CM Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy CM Eknath Shinde following an incident in which Gaikwad was seen slapping and punching a hostel canteen staff member over alleged âstale food'.
Gaikwad ordered dinner from the canteen on Tuesday night and found the dal and rice to be foul-smelling.
A video of the incident, which went viral on Wednesday, showed Sanjay Gaikwad, wearing a vest, confronting a canteen staffer and slapping and punching him. The video further showed that the MLA continued assaulting the staffer even after he fell on the floor.
Both CM Fadnavis and Eknath Shinde claimed that Sanjay Gaikwad could have complained about the food quality to the authorities concerned instead of assaulting the staff. While the top state leaders expressed displeasure over Gaikwad's behaviour, the MLA's action was also criticised by the opposition Shiv Sena (UBT), which sought strict action.
"Such an act sends the wrong signals. Public representatives' image takes a hit for misuse of power and misconduct," Fadnavis said. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and MLC Anil Parab demanded Gaikwad's suspension from the party. To this, CM Fadnavis said that the chairman of the Legislative Council and the speaker of the Legislative Assembly should decide on this case.
Hours after the video went viral, Sanjay Gaikwad, an MLA from Buldhana district in Maharashtra, claimed he had done nothing wrong and justified his action, saying he had on several occasions complained about the food quality, which was never addressed.
(with PTI inputs)
