E Mumbai Mayor loses cool over old post amid row over med student's cadaver joke
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and former Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar erupted in anger on Friday when she was questioned about a past controversy linked to
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and former Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar erupted in anger on Friday when she was questioned about a past controversy linked to her social media account. Interestingly enough, the sharp reaction came during a press interaction at the civic-run KEM Hospital in Mumbai while she was speaking about the viral 'male cadavers' row and the broader issue of irresponsible social media usage. Read Full Story During the visit by Pednekar, who is the current Leader of Opposition in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), a journalist questioned her about an objectionable tweet that was made from her account in 2021 during her tenure as the mayor. The controversy stemmed from an X (then known as Twitter) user's comment where they had posed a question about the status of the Mumbai civic body's global Covid-19 vaccine supply contract.
The Twitter user had asked "Contract Konala dila??" (To whom contract has been given?) while commenting on a Marathi news channel's tweet. The question was met with a "Tuzya Bapala" (to your father) reply from Pednekar's account. It was in this context that the journalist's question was based on. Responding sharply, Pednekar expressed her frustration in a raised tone. "I am speaking peacefully. But if you use abusive language about my mother or sister, I will not only abuse his father but also his mother. I am a sainik (Shiv Sena UBT party worker). This won’t be tolerated. We haven’t done anything like that, but you are speaking wrongly," she said, according to a rough translation of the original statement made in Hindi. At the time of the controversy, she had said that the response was posted by a party worker with whom she had left her mobile phone while attending a family function.
The Twitter post was deleted as the political backlash grew louder. Pednekar's outburst about the 2021 controversy came as she reached KEM Hospital to submit a representation to its dean over students filming social media reels at the medical college's premises. "I understand that because of unemployment, to show off their skills, people make reels, but students making it on campus is not acceptable," the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader said before Dean Dr Harish Pathak. The representation came in the wake of the controversy centred around Sejal Pawar, an undergraduate medical student at the medical college. The MBBS student sparked a massive controversy with distasteful remarks she made about the private parts of male cadavers during stand-up comedian Pranit More's show. Speaking about Pawar, Pednekar pointed out that the medical student had allegedly expressed disparaging views about the medical college and that it would be better to transfer her to some other institution.
The BriefWire