Maharashtra Bag-Check Row: After Eknath Shinde, Goa CM Pramod Sawant Subjected To Inspection

Amidst Maharashtra election campaigns, Election Commission officials checked the bags of Goa CM Pramod Sawant as he came to the state to canvas for the BJP.

The baggage-check routine of the Election Commission is extending to Chief Ministers now it seems. On Thursday, Election Commission officials searched Goa CM Pramod Sawant's bag at the Karad airport in Maharashtra's Satara district, during his campaign for the Bharatiya Janata Party in the state.

Earlier on Wednesday, the bags and helicopter of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde were checked during his campaign in the state.

The BJP and Ajit Pawar, chief of the NCP, also posted videos of the bag checks of its leaders being subjected to checks by polling officials. Among them were Deputy Chief Ministers of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar. After the helicopter check, Ajit Pawar said: "I fully cooperated and believe that such measures are essential to ensure free and fair elections. Let us all respect the law and support efforts to uphold the integrity of our democracy."

The controversy gained steam after Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray posted a video of his chopper and bags being checked by EC officials. He alleged that only Opposition leaders were being subjected to such checks and challenged the officials to check the choppers and bags of Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Prime Minister Narendra Modi who had been flying in and out of the state for poll campaigns.

When BJP posted the video of Fadnavais's bags being checked at the airport, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut said that all baggages are checked at the airport and there is no big deal in it.