BELAGAVI: Former Goa MLA Lavoo Suryaji Mamledar (68) of the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), who represented Ponda, died at a lodge here on Saturday afternoon after he was assaulted by an autorickshaw driver in a road rage incident. The Market police have arrested the autorickshaw driver Mujahid Shakeel Sanadi and are questioning him.
After the accident, Shakeel followed Mamledar back to the lodge and picked an argument. Footage from CCTV shows Shakeel assaulting Mamledar several times after which Mamledar walks back into the lodge, climbs a flight of stairs and suddenly collapses after trying to clutch a wall.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Rohan Jagadish said Lavoo Mamledar was staying at Srinivas Lodge on Khade Bazaar Road and between 1 and 1.30 pm on Saturday, when he was travelling, his car had brushed against an autorickshaw. “Following an altercation, the autorickshaw driver slapped Mamledar hard. Later, Mamledar returned to the lodge and after climbing a flight of stairs, collapsed in the reception area”.
Mamledar was immediately shifted the Belagavi Civil Hospital where an ECG and other tests were conducted and the doctors declared him dead, the DCP said. “We have registered a case and arrested the accused and seized the autorickshaw. We are investigating the case further”, the DCP said.
The body was later shifted to the Belagavi Institute of Medical Sciences (BIMS) for post-mortem examination. Police Commissioner Iada Martin Marbaniang also visited the hospital.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, who was in Prayagraj, got information about the death of Mamledar and will visit Belagavi after returning to Goa. Mamledar represented Ponda in 2012 from the MGP.
Following the death of Mamledar, BJP MLA Abhay Patil vented his anger at the Congress government in the state and also the police. “Matka is rampant and murders are taking place. Today, a former MLA was killed by an individual from a particular community. If the situation persists, nobody will come to Belagavi. Strict action must be taken against the culprits”, he said.
