A criminal defamation case has been filed against a standing member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly from Maval constituency — Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member Sanjay aka Bala Bhegde — for making derogatory statements against a Right to Information (RTI) activist and threatening him on a TV show in January 2016.

The complainant, Maval-based Somatane Phata resident Vikas Taneja, wrote in his statement that there is a forest road at a distance of around 300 metres from his father’s house, which he often used for morning walks. On January 2 last year, when Taneja was out for a stroll, he found more than 200 large trees had been hurriedly axed the previous night. On January 29, he filed a complaint against Bhegde at the forest department, alleging that the MLA had done this to build a new road via the farmhouse of district guardian minister Girish Bapat, connecting to his own home and that of his supporters.

Taneja further stated that annoyed by this complaint, Bhegde called him and warned him off, asking him to withdraw any such plaints. Taneja prepared a CD recording and transcript of the conversation, asserting that the accused intentionally insulted him.

Besides his police complaint filed on February 11 at Talegaon Dabhade police station, Taneja also wrote to the Prime Minister, Maharashtra Chief Minister and Pune district collector April 3. He further clicked photographic evidence of the lost trees and sought the intervention of print and electronic media.