A team of Pune police is on way to Chiplun in Ratnagiri to question Union minister Narayan Rane after he triggered a controversy with remarks about slapping Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray for what he claimed as the latter’s ignorance of the year of India’s independence.

“A team of Pune city Police has left for Chiplun in Ratnagiri as part of the investigation in FIR registered in Pune against Union Minister Narayan Rane,” ANI reported quoting Pune Commissioner of Police. The confirmation came amid reports that Narayan Rane was likely to be arrested.

Earlier, FIR was registered against Rane at Chaturshringi Police Station of Pune city, following a complaint by Yuva Sena, for using objectionable language against Uddhav Thackeray.

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However, Rane, who started his political career as a member of Shiv Sena, said that he had no information that an FIR has been registered against him. “I am not a common man. I have not committed any crime. Is it not a crime if someone doesn’t know about 15th August? I had said that I would have slapped – these were the words & it’s not a crime,” Rane told ANI.

It all started with Rane’s comment on Monday when he said that he would have “slapped” Udhhavy Thackeray. “It is shameful that the chief minister does not know the year of independence. He leaned back to enquire about the count of years of independence during his speech. Had I been there, I would have given (him) a tight slap,” Rane said during his Jan Ashirwad Yatra in Raigad.

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Rane’s remarks drew sharp reactions from Shiv Sena, whose workers put several posters in Mumbai and other places, calling him a ‘kombdi chor’ (chicken stealer), a reference to the poultry shop he ran in Chembur five decades ago, during his initial stint with the Bal Thackeray-led party.

Shiv Sena’s Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg MP Vinayak Raut said Rane has lost his mental balance.

“To impress BJP leadership, Rane has been attacking Shiv Sena and its leaders. He lost his mental balance after his induction into the Modi-led ministry. Modi should show him the door,” Raut said.