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Mumbai: Not to be left behind by nephew Raj Thackeray on the sons-of-the soil policy in Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena chief, Bal Thackeray, yesterday targeted north Indians, particularly Biharis and their leaders.
Incensed by the questions raised in Parliament on the tirade against north Indians in Mumbai and Maharashtra, Thackeray wrote in the Sena's newspaper Saamna that Bihar leaders accusing Mumbai of harbouring anti-national sentiments were in fact trying to stir up trouble here.
"They should realise this would only put their brethren here at the receiving end," he said, hinting at a backlash.
MPs from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have shown their "true colours" and shown their ingratitude towards Mumbai and Maharashtra with an anti-Marathi tirade in Parliament, he said.
The Sena chief was apparently trying to make sure that the pro-Marathi stand was originally the Sena's agenda, even though Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) came into the limelight during their violent anti-north Indian campaign last month.
Thackeray targeted the Biharis as "an unwanted lot" in all parts of the country. "They are not wanted in southern India, Assam and also Punjab and Chandigarh. The Biharis have antagonised local population wherever they have settled."
He also commented that Bihari leaders have made the Ganges a river of corruption. He warned Union Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav and MP Prabhunath Singh to stop interfering in Maharashtra's politics.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Governor S.M. Krishna, reacting to the war of words, said necessary measures would have to be taken to ensure the oneness of the country was not "pierced".
And Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, who is now in Delhi to finalise the plan outlay for the state with the Planning Commission, said north Indians in Maharashtra were very safe and would always remain safe.
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