Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh on Monday said he would approach the Election Commission seeking derecognition of Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena in the wake of its party chief's remarks and subsequent violence in Mumbai targetting North Indians.
"Raj Thakeray is like a saitan, who has the habit of making remarks to continue being in the news by hurting people's sentiments and creating unnecessary controversy," a usually soft-spoken Nitish Kumar remarked.
The clash between SP and MNS activists in Mumbai took place before the start of the rally at Shivaji Park, where top leaders of UNPA were due to speak.
When the two met on Sunday, it was because "Saheb wanted some of his old books," still in Raj's possession, back and Raj offered to carry them to him instead of sending them over.
Angry mobs organised rallies against Thackeray, burnt his effigies and demanded action against the MNS supremo . Thackeray's statement, comparing the popular Chhath festival to a natak, evoked wide spread protests. Political leaders, cutting across party lines, slammed the comment made by Raj Thackeray. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and Lok Janshakti Party chief Ramvilas Paswan criticised Thackeray's statement.
A delegation of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leaders met Maharashtra Governor S C Jamir on Monday, requesting him to restore 'Z' category security of MNS chief Raj Thackeray.
The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Maharashtra government on a petition seeking protection for life and property of all citizens in the wake of recent attacks against the north Indians.
A local court in Mumbai will decide on November 18 whether Maharashtra Navnirman Sena Chief Raj Thackeray has to be present in the court while arguments on the application seeking cancellation of his bail are heard.
Raising slogans against MNS chief Raj Thackeray, the activists of the Rashtravadi Shiv Sena came to the Maharashtra Sadan and damaged its reception counter. The activists said they were protesting against the attacks on north Indians by MNS activists in Maharashtra.
Family members of Sarabjit Singh, an Indian national on death row in a Pakistani prison, on Saturday met Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray. Sarabjit's sister Dalbir Kaur, her husband Baldev Singh and Sarabjit's daughter Swapandeep Kaur met Raj at his residence in central Mumbai.Describing their plight to Raj, Dalbir alleged that the government was not making the required efforts to seek Sarabjit's release.
Rahul Raj, was killed in a shootout with the police at suburban Kurla after he fired indiscriminately and threatened passengers in the bus. Rahul reportedly claimed that he had come to the city to kill Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray.
In an interview to Marathi daily Loksatta, referring to the decision of the Congress-led Democratic Front government to withdraw the security following his arrest in a case relating to attack on north Indian job aspirants, Raj Thackeray said, "The government's action was a foolish decision."
The day-long Bihar bandh was called by various student organisations, particularly AISA, the student wing of Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), an ultra Left party, to protest attacks on north Indian candidates during a railway recruitment examination in Mumbai.
Uproarious scenes were witnessed in Lok Sabha on Wednesday after members raised the issue of violence in Maharashtra.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena activists went on the rampage burning shops and hurling stones in and around neighbouring Dombivali after their arrested leader Raj Thackeray was brought to the police station in connection with the case relating to assault on north Indians.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, who was arrested early Tuesday morning, has been sent to two-week judicial custody by a court in suburban Bandra in Mumbai where he was produced around 2.50 pm. Two truckloads of Rapid Action Force personnel were stationed outside the court for security.
Nitish Kumar requested Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh to deal with such divisive elements with an iron fist. "I expect the Maharashtra government to act tough and protect our students," Nitish Kumar said in Patna on Monday morning.
Foreign actresses who appear in Bollywood films are being targeted in a hate campaign by the MNS in Mumbai.
A day after the Supreme Court asked him to desist from making provocative speeches targeting north Indians, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray chose to speak on Hindi saying the language should not be forced on the people.
The court of 1st class judicial magistrate A K Tiwary on Tuesday issued the warrant and directed Thackeray to be present personally in the court on November 17. It also ordered that a copy of the arrest warrant be issued to the Mumbai police commissioner for its execution.
Rubbishing Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray's 'hollow sympathy' for him over the Lok Sabha's privileges committee summons issue, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on Wednesday told his nephew that he need not bother."We are competent to tackle the case. You should not worry," Thackeray said in an editorial in Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana'.Raj has threatened not to allow officials and people's representative from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to enter Mumbai.
Public prosecutor Ajay Mishar's ride in Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray's car has triggered a controversy with lawyers saying such acts raise doubts whether the Maharashtra government is serious in prosecuting Thackeray in the 2008 riot case.
Complying with a Bombay High Court directive, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena President Raj Thackeray today surrendered before a court in Kalyan in Maharashtra in connection with a 2008 rioting case in which North Indians appearing for railway recruitment examination were assaulted.
Giving a new dimension to his son-of-the-soil campaign, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray said on Friday that land under irrigation in the state should be given only to Marathi people.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Thursday surrendered before a court in Aurangabad in connection with four cases of rioting registered against him in 2008, but was later released on bail. Raj presented himself in the court of Judicial Magistrate, First Class, in Gangapur area in Aurangabad in central Maharashtra. The court released him on a bail of Rs 15,000 in all the four cases. He was accompanied by his lawyer Sayaji Nagare.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Monday surrendered before a local court in Jalgaon in a case of rioting registered against him in 2008 and was later released on bail.
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.
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.
Favouring a stringent law to deal with attacks on north Indians in Maharashtra, senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh today said rowdyism by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena or Shiv Sena workers should not be tolerated at any cost.
Thackeray's latest statement is expected to spark more controversy as the MNS chief will be on a statewide tour, starting February 13.
Taking the Shiv Sena and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena head-on, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on Sunday said that it has asked its volunteers to protect north Indians in Maharashtra and prevent the spread of anti-Hindi feelings. "The Sangh Parivar has asked its volunteers in Maharashtra to try and prevent the spread of anti-north Indian and anti-Hindi feelings," said RSS leader Ram Madhav.He said the RSS was opposed to discrimination on the basis of language.
Will Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena make its mark in the forthcoming assembly election in the state?
Fuelling the language row further in Maharashtra, Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena on Monday asked taxi drivers from the Hindi-speaking states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh to be conversant in Marathi within 40 days or return to their native homes.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray, under flak for his strident anti-north Indian campaign, has decided to send letters to every household in the state, urging them to use Marathi in daily life. "Thackeray will pen the letter in Marathi and MNS workers will go to households in the state on February 27 to deliver the letter," a MNS leader said. "In the letter, the MNS chief will urge the people to use Marathi everywhere, including offices, trains and markets."
Zenda, an upcoming Marathi movie based on the feud between Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray and his estranged cousin Raj Thackeray has been termed as biased by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena activists for portraying their leader in "bad light".
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.
Employees of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) continued their strike for the 15th day on Thursday over the demand for merger of the cash-strapped corporation with the state government, despite an appeal from Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to cooperate with the government in its effort to resolve their issues.
According to Raj, north India has always looked down with contempt upon Maharashtra and if the draft notification of CMZ is implemented, development of Maharashtra and Mumbai in particular would be adversely affected.
The Aurangabad bench of the Bombay high court on Wednesday stayed the arrest warrant against Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray till January 4, 2010.The Badnapur JMFC court had issued the arrest warrant against Raj in connection to a stone pelting incident at a bus near Hirvi Phata in Badnapur of Jalna district on October 21 in 2008. Justice S S Shinde of the Aurangabad bench passed the order and advocate Sagar Ladda appeared for Raj.
The Bharatiya Janata Party will not contest the November 3 bypoll to Andheri East assembly seat in Mumbai, Maharashtra party chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule said on Monday.
