Facing severe criticism from all quarters of Indian political establishment for his anti-immigrant posture, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray took his language war to Europe where he reiterated his oft-repeated views on the politically explosive language issue that helped his party win 13 legislative assembly seats in Maharashtra in October 2009.
Commuters had a hard time getting to their offices in Mumbai due to the strike by the Sharad Rao-led Mumbai Autorickshawmen's Union, seeking a hike in minimum fares.
"Ever since Ajit Pawar become the deputy CM, he has gone aggressively against the Shiv Sena in a bid to bolster his party."
Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray has said that he does not give importance to the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, started by cousin Raj Thackeray, and neither do the people.
Eyebrows were raised on Monday in political circles after the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray visited the Bharatiya Janata Party office in Mumbai and met the party's Maharashtra President Sudhir Mungantiwar.
Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray's estranged nephew Raj Thackeray rushed to his uncle's defence on Wednesday, lambasting Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar for criticising the Sena patriarch.
As the battle for Dalit votes ahead of the civic elections in Maharashtra got interesting amid reports that the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party is mulling a resolution on renaming Dadar railway station in Mumbai as 'Chaityabhoomi' station, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray said he was opposed to any such move.
The MNS shot off a letter to the BSE authorities demanding a website in regional Marathi language to benefit the local investors.
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 Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, who parted ways with the Shiv Sena in January 2006, on Monday said he was willing to "walk a hundred steps" for his uncle Balasaheb Thackeray and added that the doors of his party were always open for the Sena founder.
Maharashtra Navnirman Seva chief Raj Thackeray on Monday met Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who is observing a 72-hour fast for 'peace and harmony' in the state.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray on Friday said he was not aware of any talks about forming an alliance with main opposition parties, Shiv Sena and Bharatiya Janata Party.
Maintaining that anything is possible in politics, senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Gopinath Munde on Sunday called for a tri-partite alliance of Shiv Sena, BJP and Raj Thackeray led-Maharashtra Navnirman Sena to pull down the ruling Congress-Nationalist Congress Party combine.
After warning multiplex owners over screening of Marathi movies, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray has now trained his guns at taxi and auto drivers.
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.
Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi asked Maharashtra's Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government on what grounds it planned to revoke the suspension of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena MLAs who disrupted Azmi's oath taking.
Top Bharatiya Janata Party leaders, including L K Advani, spoke to Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray after which the party, upset over arch-rival Maharashta Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray's visit to BJP office, said it will attend the NDA rally in Delhi on Wednesday.
Downplaying the meeting between Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray and its Maharashtra unit leaders, the Bahartiya Janata Party on Tuesday said there were no political discussions with him and hoped that Shiv Sena will participate in Wednesday's NDA rally against corruption.
Unidentified men attacked some pilgrims sleeping outside the famous Siddhivinayak temple in central Mumbai late on Monday night.No arrests have been made in connection with the case so far, said the police.Some TV channels, which showed clippings of the attackers beating up the pilgrims, claimed that the attack was carried out by members of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena. However, MNS leader Atul Sarpotdar denied his party's role in the incident.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray and Republic Party of India leader have been engaged in a mudslinging exercise after the former publicly questioned the latter's acquisition of property in Bandra.
The Mumbai police on Monday resorted to lathicharge to disperse agitating supporters of Member of Legislative Assembly Abu Azmi in suburban Govandi, protesting the assault on the Samajwadi Party leader in Maharashtra assembly by members of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena.
The first day of the newly elected Maharashtra assembly got off to a stormy start, with the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena carrying out its threat and assaulting Samajwadi Party legislator Abu Asim Azmi, who too carried out his threat to take his oath in Hindi. Action was quick in following, with four MNS legislators -- Vasant Geete, Shishir Shinde, Ram Kadam and Ramesh Wanjale -- being suspended for four years by the pro-tem speaker for the violent incident
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.
Sachin Tendulkar and his wife Anjali voted in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections at Bandra.
The Mumbai police on Wednesday arrested Maharashtra Navnirman Sena candidate from Ghatkopar (west) Ram Kadam for allegedly assaulting policemen and election officials during polling. The police also cane-charged MNS activists who protested against Kadam's arrest. Hundreds of activists gathered when police reached Kadam's residence to arrest him on Wednesday, Vatkar said, adding that the crowd broke the windowpanes of police vans.
Prakash Mahajan, brother of late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan, has been appointed Shiv Sena spokesperson and a deputy leader.
Shiv Sena activists on Friday attacked a college in suburban Mumbai as the authorities did not allow around 70 students to appear for the exams after declaring them as ineligible, the police said.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, who forced filmmaker Karan Johar to apologise for calling Mumbai 'Bombay' in his film, has attracted the ire of critics for calling the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus by its former name VT.The bustling terminus, designed by Frederick William Stevens, a consulting architect in 1887-1888, was renamed as Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in 1996, but the abbreviation VT has stuck with most Mumbaiites and Raj proved he is no "At
Five suspected members of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena on Tuesday smashed the entrance glass of an Airtel outlet in Mumbai to protest the private telecom major not using Marathi language prominently in a customer interactive system, police said.
Ashish Shelar, the city Bharatiya Janata Party chief, rubbished the reports of a secret meeting between former party president Nitin Gadkari and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray at a five-star hotel in Mumbai on Monday.
Days after he asked local multiplex owners to screen Marathi movies at prime time or face the music, the Mumbai police has served a notice to Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, warning him against giving any provocative or inflammatory speeches."A notice under Section 149 of the Criminal Procedure Code was served to Raj Thackeray, warning him against giving any speeches that incite violence," said S R Unavane, senior inspector at Shivaji Park police station.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray was on Saturday granted bail in a case filed by the police for violating orders during the Kalyan-Dombivali municipal corporation polls in October 2010. Raj appeared before the Kalyan judicial magistrate, who released him on bail on a bond of Rs 5,000 with surety of the same amount. He was accompanied by his lawyer Sayaji Nangre. The police had filed an FIR against Raj on October 30 for disobeying a notice.
After politicians got into Mumbai clean up drive in the backdrop of rising Malaria cases, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray also asked his party men to take up the responsibility of cleaning the metropolis.Raj directed his partymen to clean the city with the help of civic officials and local people. "Wherever you find garbage, clean it to control the diseases," he said.
Softening his stand against Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh said on Sunday that Raj's statement regarding migrants spreading Malaria was not from his heart.
Taking a jibe at Shiv Sena and MNS for their campaign against "outsiders" in Maharashtra, spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar on Thursday advised the Bal Thackeray family to "strictly" follow his Art of Living regimes to calm their nerves. "Thackeray parivaar ko Art of Living ki sakht zaroorat hai (The Thackeray family strictly need Art of Living lessons)," Ravi Shankar told reporters.
Maharashtra Chief Minster Ashok Chavan on Thursday condemned Uddhav and Raj Thackeray for 'touching a new low' in politics with their comments on All India Congress Committee general secretary Rahul Gandhi. "Nowhere in Indian politics has such a low level of personal allegations been witnessed. I condemn their (Uddhav and Raj Thackeray) utterances," said Chavan.
The Bombay High Court asked the Maharashtra government on Wednesday, as to whether it found any evidence of involvement of top leaders of Shiv Sena, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena and Congress in incidents of political vandalism in the state in recent past.
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.'
The Congress which has set its eyes on wresting the Mumbai Municipal Corporation, Asia's largest civic body, from the Shiv Sena-BJP in the 2012, is alarmed by the possible Muslim support to Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena.
After presenting himself before the court, Thackeray would move an application saying he was surrendering, his lawyer Sayaji Nangre told PTI. After the court grants him custody, Thackeray would immediately move for bail.
