NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday said the Badlapur incident involving the alleged sexual abuse of two kindergarten girls at a school has hit the image of Maharashtra in the country.

He accused the state government of forgetting that the responsibility for the safety of women lies with it.

Pawar, who took part in a silent protest in Pune, said the government is insensitive if it thinks the opposition is playing politics over the Badlapur incident.

“The Badlapur incident has hit the image of Maharashtra in the country,” said the chief of NCP (SP), which is a constituent of the opposition bloc Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), also comprising Congress and Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT).

Pawar said such an incident has taken place in the land of Chhatrapati Shivaji who used to chop off the hands of culprits involved in crimes against women.

The alleged sexual assault on two 4-year-old girls by a male attendant at a school in Badlapur of Thane district had led to a massive protest in the town on Tuesday, with thousands of people blocking roads and railway tracks and clashing with the police.

The MVA had called for a ‘Maharashtra Bandh’ on August 24 to protest against the crime against the young girls. However, the Bombay High Court on Friday restrained political parties or individuals from proceeding with the bandh on August 24 or any future date over the incident.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.