The complaint was lodged by Santosh Shinde, district president of the Sambhaji Brigade, a Maratha caste organisation that rose from obscurity after its violent protests against US writer James Laine’s book on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj some years ago.

Marathe, who is contesting the election for the post of president of the 86th chapter of the Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan to be held in Ratnagiri, was said to have mentioned the controversy over Laine’s book in a letter to voters.