Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam claims Maharashtra govt is scared of Raj Thackeray

Sanjay Nirupam. File Pic

Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam has alleged that the state government is "scared" of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray and therefore it's not taking action against him for "violating the conditions" for his May 1 Aurangabad rally.

The Congress leader demanded the arrest of the MNS chief for the breach of conditions for the rally, saying that it's necessary to stop him from flaring up the communal tension in the state. Sanjay Nirupam has expressed his disappointment over the 'lack of action' against the MNS chief by the Mumbai police.

"The Maharashtra police had set 16 conditions for the rally in Aurangabad, out of which he violated 12. There are non-bailable warrants against Raj Thackeray from two courts. I don't understand why is the Mumbai police not doing anything? The state government appears to be scared of Raj Thackeray," Nirupam said.

He said that there should be legal action against those who violate the rule of law. "I urge the government to not be scared. There is rule of law in the country and Maharashtra and anybody who poses a challenge against the law, they should be firmly dealt with," said Nirupam.

Raj Thackeray had held a rally in Aurangabad on May 1 and lambasted the Uddhav Thackeray government on the issue of loudspeakers. He had set a May 3 deadline for the removal of the loudspeakers from mosques. He had also threatened that "his party workers would play Hanuman Chalisa with double the volume of 'Azaan' (Muslim prayers) in front of the mosques if the state government doesn't act within the deadline".

At the end of the deadline, numerous MNS workers were detained for allegedly trying to put up loudspeakers outside mosques to play Hanuman Chalisa. Notably, a court in Parli in Maharashtra's Beed district has issued a non-bailable warrant against Raj Thackeray in a 2008 case for allegedly making inflammatory speeches. Earlier, on May 3, a Sangli court had issued a non-bailable warrant against Thackeray in the 2008 case.

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