Following the footsteps of the MNS chief's call for 'Marathi pride', Soren publicly claimed on Sunday that Jharkhand remained the sole preserve of adivasis (tribals) and Moolvasis (original settlers).
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Sunday sought Centre's intervention in unearthing the truth behind the explosives-laden car found near industrialist Mukesh Ambani's residence in Mumbai last month.
Citing Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar president Sharad Pawar on Saturday supported a probe into the controversial land deal allegedly linked to the company of his grandnephew Parth Pawar.
Flagging his stand on the sons-of-soil issue, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray said on Wednesday that if Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Amir Kasab could learn Marathi in a year then why can't Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi who has been living in Mumbai for years.
In a riposte to former Bharatiya Janata Party chief Nitin Gadkari's recent overtures to Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, the Shiv Sena on Friday decided to field its candidates in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Delhi for the Lok Sabha elections.
Reacting to the meeting of former Bharatiya Janata Party chief Nitin Gadkari with Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray in Mumbai, the Shiv Sena on Tuesday said if a senior leader from BJP supports Raj or Sharad Pawar, it can affect the alliance.
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has strongly objected to linking Bihar with the terrorists involved in 13/7 serial blasts in Mumbai.
Accused of not doing enough for Maharashtra, Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan on Tuesday said nothing could stop him from staying in Mumbai even if those opposed to him "throw bottles at my house or paint my posters black or burn effigies".
The Mumbai police on Wednesday has warned Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray and his party workers to not commit any cognizable offence following which stringent action will be taken against them.
Police said sensitive pockets, where trouble can erupt, are on high alert. Cinema theatres have also been provided security as one of the movie halls, showing a Bhojpuri film, was targeted on Saturday.
Samajwadi Party leader Abu Asim Azmi on Monday described Marathi as his mother and Hindi as his grandmother, and said he was learning the local language out of respect and not fear. "Marathi is like mother for me, but Hindi is like my grandmother. I am learning Marathi. (Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief) Raj Thackeray should not think that I am learning the language out of his fear," he said.
Congress Member of Parliament and spokesperson Sanjay Nirupam and 20 of his supporters were detained on Tuesday, ahead of a protest march planned by them, to Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray's residence in central Mumbai. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena's spokesperson Shishir Shinde was also detained by the police on Tuesday, party sources said. The police, however, refused to confirm the report.
A day after Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray reiterated his warning to take down loudspeakers from mosques by May 3, the state home department on Monday stated that the use of loudspeakers at religious sites will only be allowed with due permission.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde appears to catch up with old acquaintances and make new friends during Ganesh Utsav.
Citizens are finding cyberspace to be the best way to express their views on the grisly terror act and are not shying away from holding the country's politicians responsible for the situation.
While 72 per cent of mosques have stopped using loudspeakers for morning prayer, many others have reduced the volume of loudspeakers, claimed a police official.
"There has been no untoward incident in Mumbai since Wednesday and more than 140 people have been taken into custody in Mumbai," police sources said.
What some of our politicians were up to on Friday, October 18, 2024.
Deepak Kesarkar, a Sena MLA and spokesperson for the rebel faction headed by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, sought to know what Pawar gained by causing pain to Bal Thackeray.
'The message is loud and clear: "If you're not falling in line, we will open a line of understanding with the MNS, and then the Shiv Sena will be in trouble".'
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray has literally found himself in a 'legal soup', as he started his day on Thursday by attending various police stations in Mumbai. Thackeray was released on bail on Wednesday by a Kalyan court in a rioting case and reached home at around 1800 hours after spending 38 hours with the police, including a night in Dombivli's Manpada police lock-up.
"Those who seek to divide on the basis of religion, on the basis of caste or on the basis of the place one belongs to, I think they do not serve the cause of national unity or national progress," he said without naming anybody or a political party.
Dahi Handi celebrations in Mumbai were marked by fervor, injuries, and political campaigning ahead of local elections. One participant died, and several others were injured during the event.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena state unit general secretary Vasant Gite was detained in Nashik on Wednesday, as a preventive measure, ahead of the possible arrest of party chief Raj Thackeray. Three MNS leaders have also been taken into preventive custody, Police Commissioner S M Sayyad told PTI. With this, the total number of arrests has gone up to 126 since Tuesday, he said.
Continuing to target former Bharatiya Janata chief Party Nitin Gadkari over his plea to Raj Thackeray not to field candidates in Lok Sabha polls, the Shiv Sena on Wednesday said former is a "businessman, who has inked a deal with the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief."
A BMC spokesperson said the average voter turnout stood at 29.96 per cent till 1.30 pm in the metropolis, which has more than 1 crore eligible electors.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) president Raj Thackeray has slammed the state government's decision to make Hindi a mandatory third language in schools from Classes 1 to 5, calling it an attempt to "Hindi-fy" the state. Thackeray has vowed to oppose the decision vehemently and ensure it is not implemented. The move is part of the new curriculum implementation under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which mandates a three-language formula for classes 1 to 5. Thackeray argues that Hindi is not a national language but a state language and its imposition undermines the principle of linguistic regionalization. He also questioned why Hindi is being forced on Maharashtra but not in southern states. The Opposition Congress has also criticized the move, calling it an imposition of Hindi and a threat to Marathi sentiment. The state government, however, defended its decision, stating that Hindi is a means of communication in the entire country and that Marathi is already compulsory.
While the MNS had fielded 125 candidates, the VBA had 200 candidates in the fray.
However, incumbent Chief Minster Ashok Chavan said the Congress-NCP alliance will be looking at the Republican Party of India for possible outside support if it fell short of the majority mark.
The verbal duel between Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray reached a new crescendo on Thursday, with the Nationalist Congress Party leader challenging the latter to prove allegations of corruption against him.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray's cartoon ridiculing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah over their party's humiliating rout in the Delhi Assembly polls has invited sharp rebuke from the saffron party.
It was a meeting to show solidarity with the laid-off Jet Airways staffers, but MNS chief Raj Thackeray's men turned it into a coaching class for Marathi.
Chief of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena Raj Thackeray, along with the 13 party members who were elected to the Maharashtra legislative assembly, plays floral tribute at the Hutatma Chowk in Churchgate on Monday.
After the anti-halal meat drive, right-wing outfits led by Bajrang Dal and Sriram Sena have now called for a ban on loudspeakers in mosques.
Accusing the chief minister of watering down the Cabinet decision taken on Wednesday to make local language clause mandatory for 4000 new taxi permits to be issued by the state, Thackaray said: "More than the welfare of the people Congress CMs are more concerned about what 'Madam' (Sonia Gandhi) would think. Our CM should do a part time job with CMs from southern states to practise how to know to remain steadfast in their decisions.'
Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on Wednesday launched a veiled attack on the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, led by his estranged nephew Raj Thackeray, following publication of a photo showing an MNS leader with a functionary of Raza Academy.
Facing mounting opposition to the introduction of Hindi language in Maharashtra schools from classes 1 to 5, the state cabinet on Sunday decided to withdraw two GRs (government orders) on the implementation of the three-language policy.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray, once considered close to Narendra Modi, on Thursday said that the Gujarat chief minister should have resigned the day he was nominated BJP's prime ministerial candidate, a suggestion immediately rejected by the saffron party.
How has Raj Thackeray, who is as much a businessman as politician, been able to pull it off, when most Opposition politicians live in fear of IT and ED and CBI, asks Krishna Prasad after attending a Raj rally in Nashik.
On the eve of the Maharashtra assembly election, Loksatta Editor Kumar Ketkar, one of the most accomplished commentators on the state's politics, speaks to Prasanna D Zore.
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