CONG LEADER SHOWERED WITH NOTES, LANDS IN CONTROVERSY

MUMBAI: Congress leader and former state minister Arif Naseem Khan is now in the midst of a controversy after he was showered with currency notes, when he visited a Ganpati mandal on Monday.

The incident took place when Khan visited the Himalaya Mitra Mandal at Chandivli as a special guest.

When Khan arrived, he was showered with currency notes by members of the Bhanushali Samaj, a community from Gujarat. In the video, which has gone viral, Khan is seen amused with the treatment given to him.

Defending himself, Khan said it was part of a political conspiracy by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to malign the image of Congress leaders.

“It is a tradition of the Bhanushali community to shower currency notes and I could not stop them as it would hurt their sentiments. They shower notes on guests and then donate the same to a goshala (cowshed) in Kutch. I did not shower currency notes and just stood there to respect their sentiments,” said Khan.

He said the BJP, which took no action against its legislator Ram Kadam for his objectionable remarks about kidnapping girls who refused to marry, has no right to criticise him.

Mahendra Bhanushali, one of the main organiser and an officebearer of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), called it part of tradition to support social causes.

“We have a tradition of showering money on individuals and this amount is used for social purposes like education, cow protection and medical facilities. Khan had come at that time and we showered money on him like the others,” said Bhanushali.