03-06-2025
Dowry death: MVA team asks guv to oust women panel's head
Mumbai: A fortnight after the daughter-in-law of a now expelled Pune NCP leader died by suicide allegedly after being tortured for dowry, a delegation of women MVA functionaries called on governor C P Radhakrishnan on Tuesday to seek the removal of state women's commission head Rupali Chakankar, who is also president of the women's wing of NCP, alleging partisanship.
The delegation told the governor that the Pune woman, Vaishnavi Hagawane, was mentally tortured and driven to suicide, adding that she had lodged a complaint with the women's commission but it remained a silent spectator.
NCP (SP) leader Rohini Khadse, who was part of the delegation, alleged that Chakankar failed to take cognisance of multiple complaints by women in different cases in the last six months, following which there was a spurt in violence.
"In our opinion, the state women's commission has failed to take action even on serious complaints of gross injustice on women and domestic violence," she said.
She said it appears that the Chakankar-led women's commission is casual in its approach to complaints by women and lacks seriousness. "Since she has political affiliations, we have urged the governor to appoint an apolitical person to the post who will perform her duties seriously and ensure justice to womenfolk."
Besides Khadse, who heads the women's wing of NCP (SP), Congress legislator Jyoti Gaikwad, Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Sushama Andhare, former legislator Vidya Chavan, former Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar, and Jayashri Shelke called on the governor.
Vaishnavi (24) was found hanging in her marital home on May 16. Her family alleged that she suffered harassment at the hands of her in-laws—the family of expelled NCP leader Rajendra Hagawane—over a Rs 2-crore dowry demand. Six people have been arrested in the case so far.
