By Apurva Bhatt

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday issued an ultimatum and directed police to arrest within 48 hours the culprits who hurled stones at a church in Navi Mumbai on Saturday. 

It is alleged that three culprits came on a bike and hurled stones into the St George Catholic Church in New Panvel early on Saturday, breaking a glass pane. Fadnavis under pressure from the opposition in the house, sought to take control of the situation. The opposition walked out from the assembly session to show their protest. Political opponents of Fadnavis snatched the opportunity to put pressure on him after the CM and the police embarrassingly spoke in two voices over the quality of CCTV footage of the attackers on Sunday.

In the House, the government said it suspected "political or foreign hands" in the incident and promised that not only would the vandals be arrested, but investigators would "go to the root of it" Responding to the opposition demand for a statement in the legislative assembly, minority affairs minister Eknath Khadse said: "A foreign hand, anti-social elements or a political person may be involved. A political hand cannot be ruled out. Detailed facts will be revealed before the end of the budget session." The session is expected to continue till April 10.

Chhagan Bhujbal of the NCP took objection to the reply, saying the government was "insensitive" to the issue and was politicizing it. As Khadse went raked up the issue of attacks on temples and mosques, the opposition took serious objection, terming it "highly insensitive" and then the Congress and NCP members walked out. Mumbai BJP chief and MLA Ashish Shelar, who led a delegation of representatives of the Bombay Catholic Sabha, National Christian Council and United Christians of Mumbai to the chief minister at Vidhan Bhavan on Monday afternoon, said the CM has said the culprits must be nabbed within 48 hours.

Bombay Catholic Sabha's Gordon D'Souza said Fadnavis had also accepted the delegation's proposal of setting up fact-finding cells in every city, taluka and district where allegations of luring people for religious conversion will be investigated.