Sapkal demanded that Fadnavis take responsibility for the situation and provide Maharashtra with a capable full-time Home Minister. (Photos: X/Screengrab from ANI/Express)Alleging that law and order in Maharashtra has completely collapsed, Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal on Saturday claimed that illegal payments are being collected and passed up the administrative hierarchy, reaching the sixth floor of Mantralaya.“The police administration no longer commands fear or respect. Cannabis is being sold freely, illicit liquor dens are operating unabated, and toxic liquor has wreaked havoc. Maharashtra has around 500 towns and 43,000 villages, and illegal businesses and liquor dens are openly operating across the state. It is because of these activities that innocent people lost their lives in the toxic liquor tragedy in Pune,” Sapkal said.Sapkal launched a sharp attack on the state’s Home Department, which is headed by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, alleging that it was being run by a ‘Pandu Havaldar’ (a colloquial reference to an ordinary constable), resulting in complete lawlessness. He demanded that Fadnavis take responsibility for the situation and provide Maharashtra with a capable full-time Home Minister.Speaking to the media at Tilak Bhavan in Mumbai, Sapkal accused the government of acting only after 22 people died in the toxic liquor tragedy in Pune, alleging that the crackdown on illegal liquor units came too late. He further alleged that the Chief Minister had effectively altered the police motto of “Sadrakshanaya Khalanigrahanaya” (to protect the good and punish the wicked).“Since the Pune incident has triggered widespread public outrage, the government is now merely staging a drama of action to save its reputation,” he said.Criticising the functioning of the Home Department, the Congress leader cited a case from Buldhana district in which a girl went missing. According to Sapkal, the police later found a body and assumed it belonged to the missing girl. Based on that assumption, they arrested the girl’s father and brother, allegedly subjected them to severe physical assault, extracted confessions and publicly claimed to have solved the case within 48 hours.“However, the missing girl later reappeared alive. The police acted without proper verification. It was a case of letting the thief go and hanging the saint,” Sapkal said.Story continues below this adResponding to the incident, The CM vowed that the government would crack down on those responsible.“We have ordered a probe. All those involved in the manufacture and supply of illicit liquor that leads to deaths will be tracked and punished. The police will get to the root of the matter to ascertain the extent of the network,” he said on Friday.