Three FIRS in Maha against actor for post on Sharad Pawar

MUMBAI: Trouble mounted for Marathi actor Ketaki Chitale as three more cases were registered against her - two in Mumbai and one in Akola district - for allegedly sharing an objectionable post on social media about NCP chief Sharad Pawar, police said.

Earlier, cases were filed against the 29-year-old TV actor in Thane, Pune and Dhule districts in connection with the online post.

“In Mumbai, the cases were registered at Goregaon and Bhoiwada police stations on Saturday,” an official said.

At Bhoiwada, the case was registered based on a complaint filed by advocate Prashant Shankar Duete, a students’ wing president of the NCP’S Mumbai unit.

In Akola, the FIR was recorded at Khadan police station against Chitale after a complaint was lodged by Kalpana Gawarguru, a local office-bearer of the NCP, another official said.

The cases at these police stations were registered under IPC sections 500 (defamation), 501 (printing or engraving matter known to be defamatory), 505 (2) (making, publishing or circulating any statement, rumour or report promoting enmity, hatred or ill will between classes), 153 A (spreading disharmony among people), police said.

Thane Police had on Saturday arrested Chitale after a case was registered against her at Kalwa police station there over the social media post. A Thane court remanded her in police custody till May 18.

The post in Marathi written by someone else, which Chitale allegedly shared on Facebook on Friday, only mentioned the surname Pawar and the age of 80. The NCP supremo is 81 years old. The post contained phrases like “hell is waiting” and “you hate Brahmins”, allegedly referring to Pawar whose party shares power in Maharashtra with the Shiv Sena and Congress.

In Pune too, a case was registered against her on a complaint filed by an NCP worker.