Ashok Chavan: Matter of migrants coming out in large numbers in Mumbai being probed

Former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan on Wednesday demanded a thorough probe into Tuesday''s gathering of migrants at Mumbai''s Bandra railway station and said it was an attempt to disrupt communal harmony and negate the state's efforts to fight the coronavirus outbreak.

Addressing a press conference through a video link, he cited a letter of the South Central Railways for starting special trains to transport migrant labourers that might have triggered the gathering at Bandra.

On Tuesday more than 1,000 migrant workers had gathered outside the station in Bandra and demanded transportation arrangements to go back to their hometowns, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the extension of the ongoing nationwide lockdown till May 3.

Chavan said a police probe into the matter has already been launched and the guilty will be brought to book.

He said he smelt a political conspiracy behind the campaigns being run on social media to impose President''s Rule in Maharashtra.

"Whatever happened on Tuesday, there needs to be a thorough investigation into it.

"There are some who want to disturb the communal harmony in Maharashtra and negate the state''s efforts to fight coronavirus," he said.

Taking on the BJP, Chavan said, "Who is patronising the social media campaigns to impose President''s Rule in Maharashtra? It smells of a political conspiracy. This is not the time to play politics, but who is running such social media campaigns needs to be found out."