Mother of rape accused killed in encounter files defamation against Eknath Shinde

The mother of Akshay Shinde, who was arrested in rape and murder of minors and was later killed in a police encounter, has filed defamation complaints against Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, several other politicians, and a media house.
Alka Anna Shinde has approached both a Magistrate court and the Bombay High Court, seeking unconditional apologies and damages amounting to hundreds of crores.
Her plea seeks criminal defamation proceedings and substantial damages, including Rs 300 crore from a media house, for the harm caused to her family’s reputation and well-being.
Shinde, who works as a manual scavenger, claims she and her husband have been left homeless and ostracised since her son’s arrest in a sexual assault case in Badlapur in mid-August. After protests erupted and media outlets broadcast her son’s photograph, she says they were assaulted and forced out of their home.
Now living at a bus stop near Kalyan Railway Station or on the platform of Kalyan Railway Station, Shinde alleges her son was killed in a police encounter on September 23 to gain political advantage in upcoming elections.
The legal plea accuses the politicians and their supporters of endorsing the encounter and undermining the judicial system, citing statements such as those made by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Raj Thackeray’s wife, who allegedly praised the police and called for regular encounters in rape cases.
Shinde’s complaint states that her family has been subjected to societal hatred, with politicians branding her son a “monster” and opposing his last rites. She argues her son was declared guilty before any court ruling, which she says has ruined her family’s livelihood and forced them to beg for survival.