Who Is Madhavi Jadhav? Nashik Forest Officer Who Interrupted Girish Mahajan’s Speech For Not Mentioning Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar

A video of Madhavi Jadhav, a Nashik Forest Department staffer, has gone viral on social media since Monday morning. In the video, Jadhav is seen lashing out at Maharashtra Water Resources Minister Girish Mahajan for not mentioning Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar's name in his Republic Day speech.

"Girish Mahajan didn't take Dr Ambedkar's name in his speech, whereas the names of those people who were not responsible for democracy and the Constitution were frequently mentioned. Why was the name of the person who deserves the real honour of the Republic Day not taken during the speech?" she asked.

She accused Mahajan of trying to erase Dr Ambedkar's identity. "People like me can get government jobs because of Dr Ambedkar. I will not apologise," she said and dared the administration to suspend her.

'Purely unintentional'

Reacting to the incident, Mahajan said the omission of reference to Dr Ambedkar was purely unintentional. "I raised slogans like 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai', 'Vande Mataram', and 'Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Ki Jai'. I didn't intend to mention the name of Dr Ambedkar. I always hail him in my speeches. However, I apologise for the same," Mahajan said.

Meanwhile, politicians across party lines slammed Mahajan.

'Crime under the Atrocities Act'

Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) chief and grandson of Dr Ambedkar, Prakash Ambedkar, spoke to Jadhav over the phone. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), he wrote, "Today, I spoke on the phone with Madhavi Jadhav (a forest guard), who publicly protested against the vile mentality of BJP minister Girish Mahajan in Nashik. During the call, Madhavi Jadhav narrated the entire sequence of events to me. Minister Girish Mahajan's actions constitute a crime under the Atrocities Act. The Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi Nashik West Committee is currently attempting to file a complaint with the police regarding this matter."

He added, "If the police do not register this case, I myself will draft the necessary legal documents and compel the police to register the crime. The RSS-BJP is consistently insulting Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar. We publicly condemn the actions of the BJP and Girish Mahajan," he added.

'Maharashtra will never forgive'

Congress MP slammed the BJP over the incident. "Republic Day is a celebration of the Constitution, and forgetting its makers reflects the BJP's anti-Maharashtra mindset," she alleged.

Gaikwad stated that the objection raised by Forest Department officer during the event reflected the voice of every self-respecting Marathi citizen. She alleged that the ruling party cared only about power and money and had no respect for the leaders who shaped the state and the nation. "The people of Maharashtra will never forgive such ministers who are intoxicated with power," she said in a statement.

'Jai Bhim'

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief took to X and wrote, "LIBERTY, EQUALITY, JUSTICE, FRATERNITY. JAI BHIM."