Expect plenty of fireworks on May 1 this year as the state celebrates 50 years of its formation.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Tuesday asked party workers to remove the 'tail' from mobile service provider Airtel for failing to launch announcements in Marathi.
Two days after MNS chief Raj Thackeray declared his support to the Modi government over eviction of Bangladeshi and Pakistani infiltrators, the Shiv Sena said in its mouthpiece that Muslim infiltrators from these countries should be thrown out. It also took a dig at Raj over his ideological shift towards Hindutva.
Raj said," If the Prime Minister can rake up the issue of ban on turbans for the Sikhs in France when the French President came to India, if Karunanidhi could take up the issue of problems of Tamils in Malaysia with the Malaysian government, if the Hindi channels in Mumbai spew venom against Maharashtra while supporting the people from UP and Bihar, then how come I am dubbed as a goonda when I speak about the self-respect of the state ?".
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Sunday declared that he was not afraid of fighting for the sons-of-the-soil issue and was ready to do anything for the Marathi manoos.Thackeray also appealed them not to allow migrants from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to settle down in Amravati as it is not in larger interest of the state."People from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are trying to settle in all parts of Maharashtra. It is dangerous," he said.
Impressed by the Tamil Conference held recently, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Sunday lamented that such efforts were not being made in Maharashtra for Marathi language.
After his campaign against North Indians, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray on Monday asked English medium schools in the state to make Marathi a compulsory subject from first standard and shopowners to put up nameplates in Marathi in a month. The MNS chief also reiterated his appeal to Marathi officials to stop abetting 'outsiders' by issuing bogus domicile certificates and driving licences, saying these acts were rendering the state bankrupt.
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.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Tuedsay faced more flak across the political spectrum for blaming 'migrants' for malaria outbreak in Mumbai with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar saying the remarks were uncalled for and deplorable.
Two days after the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray announced a state-wide 'rasta roko' on Wednesday to protest against toll collection in the state, police on Tuesday served a notice to him asking the leader to refrain from any activity that would create law and order problems.
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.
Bharatiya Janata Party legislature party leader Devendra Fadnavis was sworn-in as new chief minister of Maharashtra while allies Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar took oath as deputy CMs at a grand ceremony in Mumbai on Thursday evening.
All mosques have taken permission for the use of loudspeakers, Raut said.
While people voted in a fifth round that will set the tone as this election rounds into the straight, and while Modi on the stump chews the cud of personal grievances and hackneyed promises that have long since passed their use-by date, there is a rogue wave rising -- what damage it will do, we will know 16 days from today, observes Prem Panicker.
"My brand of politics will work", thundered Raj Thackeray after his Maharashtra Navnirman Sena romped home with an impressive 13 seats in the first Assembly polls the party contested.
Bihar Diwas celebration is a socio-cultural event, it has nothing to do with politics, says Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. M I Khan reports
The Shiv Sena on Wednesday said the events of the last two weeks, culminating in the arrest of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, are part of a political experiment in Maharashtra which will not succeed.
"Balasaheb sent Raj a bouquet of flowers and they spoke on the phone this morning, as they do every year on Raj'sbirthday," a source close to Raj said in Mumbai.
With two phases of voting already completed, political parties are busy with filing nominations, addressing roadshows and undertaking hectic campaigns for the constituencies that will vote this month.
Fearing reprisals against Maharashtrians residing in northern states due to Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray's recent comments against Biharis, Republican Party of India-Athvale leader Ramdas Athavale on Monday appealed to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to protect Marathis in his state.
The Aurangabad bench of Bombay High Court on Thursday, stayed the arrest warrant of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray till February 17, in connection with stone pelting by the party activists on a bus near Aurangabad in 2008.
The Supreme Court on Friday shifted to a Delhi court seven cases registered against Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray in Jharkhand and Bihar for promoting animosity among citizens by his alleged hate speeches against north Indians.
The Supreme Court on Friday shifted to a Delhi court seven cases registered against Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray in Jharkhand and Bihar for promoting animosity among citizens by his alleged hate speeches against north Indians.
A day after Maharahstra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray warned that arrogant auto rickshaw unions would attract public ire, reports of attacks on auto rickshaws have been surfacing from different parts of Mumbai.
'If the Maha Vikas Aghadi thinks that they have won 30 (Lok Sabha) seats and that would translate to winning 180 assembly seats they would be living in a fool's paradise.'
After attacking migrants from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray has now trained his guns at a growing number of North Indian students coming to Pune for higher education. "Pune, with its large number of reputed universities and institutions imparting higher education is attracting students from these states who are being given admissions on massive donations leaving in the lurch the deserving Marathi aspirants," he said.
Heavy police security was deployed in Mumbai in the wake of Thackeray's call for "silencing" loudspeakers atop mosques.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Thursday said if north Indian-origin leaders in Mumbai did not stop making inflammatory statements, there would be "riots".
Hundreds of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena supporters were expected to gather outside the court to see their leader Raj Thackeray who will appear before it on Wednesday afternoon. The police resorted to cane charge on MNS supporters who were present in large numbers outside the court despite heavy police presence.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister R R Patil was understood to have faced criticism from some of his ministerial colleagues at a cabinet meeting in Mumbai on Tuesday night for his handling of the issue of Raj Thackeray's attack on North Indians, but he denied having threatened to quit. "The objective behind spreading such reports is to harm the party interests," Patil said in a veiled reference to senior NCP ministers with whom he does not get along well.
A 19-year-old boy from neighbouring Thane district, detained on suspicion of posting an "objectionable" Facebook comment against Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, was let off after police found that a "fake account" was used by some persons in the teenager's name.
An auto rickshaw driver was arrested on Saturday for allegedly making a fake call claiming that three explosives had been planted to eliminate Maharashra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Tuesday during his rally, sending the security agencies into a tizzy, the police said.
Singling out trade unionist Sharad Rao whose Mumbai Auto-rickshawmen's Union has threatened to go on indefinite strike next month, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Tuesday said his party would step in to counter the inconvenience caused to commuters due to their "arrogant" behaviour.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh has rejected the demand for booking MNS leader Raj Thackeray, whose party has targeted North Indians in the state, under the National Security Act saying he did not agree with this.
The police said the miscreants were "unidentified people" and at this point and there were no clarity on who was behind it.
Vedat Marathe Veer Daudale Saat is set to release on Diwali 2023 in Marathi, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to grant urgent hearing to a petition seeking direction to the Election Commission, to derecognise Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navanirman Sena, for his controversial remarks against north Indians. A bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan said that the petition would be heard on February 22, as fixed by the registry. The petition had been filed by advocate Arvind Shukla.
The silence is specially deafening from three parties that symbolised hope for Muslims: The Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party and the Samajwadi Party. 'What fear prevents these leaders from at least talking about the way our community is being targeted?' 'Will they really lose Hindu votes if they do so?'
"Two women from Uttar Pradesh were raped and no complaint has been lodged so far. Local people know the culprits but they are frightened to name them," Abu Azmi said. Azmi alleged that the Congress, heading the coalition government in Maharashtra, is supporting Raj to secure its vote bank and ignoring his activities.Raj should be charged for murder and robbery as the MNS campaign claimed two lives and many north Indians were looted while fleeing Maharashtra, he said.
Walse Patil said MNS chief Raj Thackeray will also be invited for the meeting.
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