Two days after a video went viral showing Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad allegedly slapping a canteen worker at the Akashvani MLA hostel in Mumbai, police have registered a case against him. The incident has sparked widespread condemnation and triggered a political row, raising questions about the conduct of elected officials.

The controversy began when Gaikwad, a legislator from the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction, ordered dinner from the MLA hostel canteen. He claimed that the dal and rice served to him were stale and foul-smelling. Angered by this, Gaikwad went to the canteen and confronted the staff. A video of the incident shows Gaikwad berating the canteen staff, refusing to pay the bill, and then slapping an employee at the billing counter. The video quickly spread on social media, drawing strong reactions from the public and political figures. The canteen worker who was slapped has been identified as Yogesh Kutran. Following the incident, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) collected samples of the food for testing and subsequently canceled the canteen's license, which was run by Ajanta Caterers.

Gaikwad has defended his actions, stating that he had previously complained about the poor quality of food and that this time, it was unacceptable. He asserted that he does not regret his actions and would raise the issue in the ongoing legislative session. Gaikwad even justified his behavior by saying he used the "language Balasaheb Thackeray has taught us" and called himself a "warrior". He further claimed that his actions "helped resolve the grievances of lakhs of people" and that he only "taught a lesson to those who were trying to play with the lives of others by feeding them wrong food". He also said that Marathis would not have served stale food if they were allowed to run the canteen.

However, his actions have been widely criticized. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis condemned the incident, stating that "such conduct does not send the right message" and "impacts the image of the state legislature". He added that there are proper channels to address issues with food quality, such as filing a formal complaint. Other political figures have also voiced their disapproval. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi called Gaikwad's behavior "extremely shameful," while Congress MLA Dr. Jyoti Eknath Gaikwad stated that the canteen staff should not have been beaten and should have been questioned according to the rules. Uddhav Thackeray claimed that the incident was a conspiracy to defame CM Devendra Fadnavis. Eknath Shinde also stated that "beating someone is not right," even if there is a problem.