Man jumps from Mantralalya passage after demanding for…

STRAP: To seek attention, a youth from Pune staged an innovative protest on the safety net put up in the Mantralaya passage.

NP NEWS 24 ONLINE- Pune based youth, Laxman Chavan from Kothrud, entered onto the safety net on Monday afternoon to protest against the government’s policies. Chavan is the president of Bhartiya Prajasattak Party.

After the suicide attempt by a youth from Chembur in February, the government had installed a safety net at the building’s second floor level as a precautionary measure. Chembur youth Harshal Raote had jumped from the fifth floor in February and died.

Chavan came to Mantralaya with letters, which he handed over to various ministers’ offices and then climbed on to the net from the second floor. Chavan rolled on the safety net and reached the centre of the net. After reaching there, he held some flex banners on the safety net as a form of protest. The incident halted work in the Mantralaya for some time.

Chavan, who calls himself a “desh sewak,” had written a memorandum to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on demands including declaring all elected representatives as public servants, 50 per cent quota for women in Parliament and state assemblies, regulating fees of pre-primary schools, providing medical and other facilities in rural areas, and better working and living conditions for the police. If the government cannot stop the mother-child mortalities and solve the farmers’ issues, all the ministers should give up the facilities that they are entitled to.

Police tried to catch him but he started running on the net. After a dramatic chase, the police finally got hold of him with the help of fire brigade staff and took him to the Marine Drive police station.