Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar on February 14 denied any involvement in a land dispute near Alibag. His clarification came after a viral video showed him intervening in a roadside argument, leading to allegations of land grabbing by political rivals in the coastal region of Raigad district.
The controversy erupted after Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut shared the video on X, claiming that government officials were snatching land in Mahtroli village while a family wedding was underway. The footage showed a woman hitting a man in the presence of Narwekar, with mentions of land rights being heard in the background.
- Mahtroli Village Incident — A viral video showed a confrontation between locals over land measurement during a wedding
- Speaker’s Clarification — Rahul Narwekar stated he was only passing by and stopped to mediate a heated argument
- Farmer Testimony — Local resident Ramesh Patil confirmed the Speaker had no connection to the property dispute
- Real Estate Boom — Alibag has seen a surge in land acquisitions by Mumbai elites over the last two decades
Narwekar, a BJP MLA, explained that he was traveling to his own farm a few days ago when he saw two farmers engaged in a quarrel. "I only advised them to resolve the matter peacefully and then proceeded for my work," he stated, asserting that he had no personal or legal connection to the specific plot of land in question.
Interestingly, an election affidavit filed by the Speaker's brother, Makrand Narwekar, revealed that he had purchased 27 land parcels in the Alibag area between 2022 and 2025. However, the Speaker maintained that the incident in the video was purely a local dispute where he acted as a concerned citizen to prevent further escalation.
