Shiv Sena (UBT) withdraws motion as Kunal Kamra row escalates

In a notable political development Shiv Sena UBT has officially withdrawn the noconfidence motion against Maharashtra Legislative Council Chairman Ram Shinde ANI reportsThe motion was originally filed by the Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council Ambadas Danve However as per ANI Danve himself has now proposed to withdraw it marking a shift in the partyrsquos stanceMeanwhile the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly has been adjourned sine die ANI reports The next session the Monsoon Session is scheduled to commence on 30th June 2025The opposition alliance in Maharashtra has strongly criticised the Mahayuti government alleging a breakdown of law and order This follows an incident where Yuva Sena activists vandalised the venue where standup comedian Kunal Kamra had performed his controversial showEarlier ANI reported that Mumbai Police issued a second summons to Kamra directing him to appear for clarification regarding his joke referring to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde as a gaddar traitor in his latest standup video Naya Bharat on YouTubeAccording to ANI Kamra failed to respond to the first summons with his lawyer requesting a sevenday extension However after he did not appear Mumbai Police sought legal opinion and subsequently issued a fresh summonsAs per ANI police officials are investigating claims that Kamra had made critical remarks about Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in addition to satirical comments about other prominent figures Authorities have indicated that if the inquiry reveals that Kamra has previously made such remarks about politicians actors or sportspersons further action may be taken against him Officials also clarified that while Kamrarsquos lawyer has been in contact the comedian himself has not directly engaged with police officialsOn Tuesday ANI reported that Kamra released a new video mocking Shiv Sena workers for vandalising The Habitat comedy club in Mumbai where he had performedReacting to the controversy Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar stated Our CM Devendra Fadnavis had responded to this issue on behalf of the government Our CM has said that action will be taken as per the lawAccording to ANI Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis took a firm stance against Kamrarsquos remarks addressing the matter in the state Assembly on Monday He emphasised that while the government values humour and satire it will not allow freedom of expression to be misused as a tool for spreading tyrannyOur government appreciates humour and satire Political satire is acceptable but we do not support freedom of speech when it is misused for tyranny Fadnavis assertedAs per ANI the Chief Minister further criticised Kamrarsquos style of comedy stating that the comedian has previously targeted highprofile figures including the Prime Minister and the Chief JusticeThis artist creates controversy to gain fame He has targeted Eknath Shinde and staged lowquality comedy It is for the people to decide whether Shinde is a lsquogaddarrsquo or not Fadnavis said in the AssemblyWith inputs from ANI