The Mumbai police has arrested a person for allegedly defaming Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis recently, by tweeting his family photograph.

Mumbai: The Mumbai police has arrested a person for allegedly defaming Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis recently, by making a misleading claim that he was holidaying with his family while on a recent trip to the US.

The accused, who has been identified as Ajay Hatekar, was arrested by the suburban Oshiwara police.

Hatekar had allegedly posted a photograph of the Maharashtra chief minister's family enjoying a vacation in Goa, in 2011-2012, on Twitter, and suggested that it was a photograph of the CM's family holidaying in the USA at present.

According to the police, Hatewar posted the photo on Twitter at 8.30 am on July 2, by linking it to the Maharashtra chief minister's recent visit to the USA. Later, a police complaint was lodged by Sanjay Pandey, a BJP worker, alleging that Twitter had tried to malign the Maharashtra Chief Minister, the official said.

Pandey said that he had lodged the complaint after receiving a WhatsApp message from a friend, Raju Yadav, who had provided him the hyperlink of the tweet, he said.

After posting this photo on Twitter, Hatewar tweeted that the Maharashtra CM was enjoying a holiday in the USA, where he had gone to seek foreign direct investment, the official said.

Meanwhile, the accused has been booked under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Information Technology Act, 2000, he added.

PTI