A day after a Marathi woman, Tripti Devrukhkar-Ekbote, brought attention to her alleged refusal of a shop space in a predominantly Gujarati-owned building in northeastern Mumbai, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) President, Raj Thackeray, addressed the situation. Devrukhkar-Ekbote met with Raj Thackeray, his wife Sharmila, and other party leaders to share her ordeal in the Shiv Sadan Society in the Mulund suburb.
“When any wrong is done to a Marathi anywhere, he/she remembers the MNS… It should be like this. Such behavior will not be tolerated. If you see injustice done to our people, you must kick them…” Raj Thackeray encouraged his party activists.
Regarding the incident in Mulund affecting Tripti, Raj Thackeray stated, “When my MNS soldiers intervened in our style, the building Secretary tendered an apology…” He cautioned that if such incidents reoccur in Mumbai or elsewhere in the state, there will be consequences, and called on the Maharashtra government to assert its power.
Tripti revealed that while the landlord of the premises had “no problems,” it was the building Secretary who raised objections. She mentioned that the landlord was also displeased with the arbitrary rules and promised to discuss the matter with the Society’s managing committee.
Tripti stated that she initially did not seek help from any quarters but that the local MNS came to her aid after her video went viral. She thanked Sharmila Thackeray for her strong support.
The incident involving Tripti being allegedly prevented from renting an office space in the Shiv Sadan Society in Mulund west sparked a major political row. Several political leaders, including Congress state President Nana Patole, Shiv Sena-UBT leaders Aditya Thackeray and Sushma Andhare, and Nationalist Congress Party’s General Secretary Dr. Jitendra Awhad, voiced their strong reactions to the episode and criticized the government of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar.
After Tripti’s video went viral, the Mulund Police booked Praveen Thakkar and his son Nilesh, detaining them late on Wednesday and launching an investigation.
In her emotional video clip, Tripti recounts how she was openly threatened and prevented from taking an office space, with members of the society stating, “Marathis are not allowed in this society, as per rules.” She expressed her disappointment that no fellow Maharashtrians came to her aid during the incident.
Dr. Awhad highlighted that in Marwari-Jain-Gujarati societies, Marathis and Dalits are not allowed to buy properties, and Muslims are barred due to their religion. The incident and Tripti’s video triggered a strong response on social media, with some pointing out that prominent Muslims and Bollywood celebrities had faced similar discriminatory treatment in so-called ‘vegetarian’ societies in the past.