Resign and join RSS: Raj Thackeray slams IPS officer amid row over speech at right-wing event

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena MNS chief Raj Thackeray on Friday criticised senior IPS officer Vishwas Nangare Patil over his participation in a Hindu Sammelan organised by the Sakal Hindu Samaj saying that if the officer wished to publicly express support for the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh RSS he should resign from service and join the organisation or the BJPThe remarks come after an undated video of Nangare Patils speech at the event went viral earlier this week triggering a political controversy The Maharashtra Congress has already sought an inquiry into the officers participation alleging that it raises questions about political neutrality and compliance with the All India Services Conduct RulesNangare Patil was appointed Nagpur Police Commissioner earlier this weekRaj Thackeray questions officers neutralityIn a post on X Raj Thackeray said a serving police officer must remain impartial and should not publicly associate with any political or ideological organisationHe alleged that although the Hindu conferences are presented as nonpolitical events they are political in nature hellipmdash Raj Thackeray RajThackeray June 27 2026It seems that IPS officer Mr Vishwas Nangre Patil has suddenly developed a desire to show dual loyalty He is a police officer so his loyalty should be solely and exclusively to the duties of the police force But here Nangre Patil appears to want to demonstrate his loyalty to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Currently Hindu conferences are being held across the state and at one such conference Vishwas Nangre Patil went and showered praises on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and its founder Fundamentally even though these conferences are portrayed as apolitical they are inherently politicalHe further said that anyone examining the organisers and objectives of such programmes would understand their political backgroundCalls on officer to resign if he wishes to express supportRaj Thackeray said government officers particularly police officials are expected to remain politically neutral while discharging their dutiesAt such an event Nangre Patil is going and openly singing the praises of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Have you forgotten that you are a police officer and impartiality is expected from officers If you feel affection for the Sangh keep it in your heart or if you want to speak about it publicly then resign from service and join the Sangh or the BJP After all a rehabilitation guarantee scheme for disgruntled officers has been running for many years now Yours will happen tooHe also questioned whether the Chief Minister and the Home Minister considered such conduct appropriate for a serving IPS officerDraws comparison with 2012 incidentReferring to an incident during an MNS protest in 2012 Raj Thackeray claimed that a police constable had faced disciplinary action after publicly expressing support for himIn 2012 during the Maharashtra Navnirman Senas protest march against the Raza Academy a constable had come and stood by the police for which he congratulated me But the thengovernment sent him on compulsory leave for abandoning impartiality So will this government take the same stance in Nangre Patils case Or does this dual loyalty work for the government or does it feel like it must be shownHe questioned whether the present government would apply the same standards in the case of Nangare PatilRaises concerns over neutrality of public institutionsRaj Thackeray also expressed concern over the functioning of democratic institutions saying public confidence could be affected if government officials were perceived to be politically alignedLegislators and MPs have been put in a situation where if someone says come to us they have to rush over When theres already doubt about whether any opposition MLAs or MPs are left if government officers too fail to remain impartial then who should the people look toConcluding his remarks he appealed directly to the IPS officerWhether its Nangre Patil or someone else my request to them is if youre running after the government or the organizations behind it thats exactly what they want But Nangre Patil you are a good efficient officermdashdont you at least pawn your sense of propriety before political parties and organizationsThe controversy began after a video of Nangare Patils speech at the Hindu Sammelan surfaced on social media earlier this week The senior IPS officer has not publicly responded to Raj Thackerays remarks