The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena held protests at three prominent toll plazas in Mumbai, Thane and Panvel, demanding the elimination of toll charges for small vehicles. MNS activists voiced their protests at the Shedung toll plaza in Panvel along the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, the Anand Nagar Toll plaza in Mulund, and at the toll booth in Airoli.
The protest by MNS resulted in long queues of vehicles leading to traffic snarls on Eastern and Western Express Highway on Monday afternoon. MNS workers also circulated a clip in which Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is heard saying that the state was not charging toll on small vehicles but only on commercial vehicles.
The Deputy Chief Minister’s Office on Monday issued a clarification stating that from midnight of May 31, 2015, road toll tax collection was stopped at 11 of the 38 toll stations of the Public Works Department and one out of 53 of the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation. Terming the toll tax as the state’s biggest ‘scam’, MNS chief Raj Thackeray said the MNS workers will go to the toll plazas and would not allow the collection of toll from the smaller and light vehicles.
Thackeray said if the government tries to stop them, then the toll plazas would be burnt down. “I will surely discuss the issue with CM Eknath Shinde in a couple of days and see his response on the matter. Fadnavis said there is no toll for four-wheelers and two-wheelers in the state. If this is the case and if there is a collection of toll from the small vehicles then we will stop that collection. My Maharashtra Sainiks will go to all the toll plazas and stop the collection of toll from the smaller vehicles and if they are stopped then we will burn those toll booths. Then let the government take whatever action they want to take,” Raj Thackeray said.
