Will hold meeting with key leaders of all parties, including MNS, before final decision on loudspeaker: Walse Patil

Patil said that the Supreme Court had passed a judgment on noise pollution in 2005, adding the then state government had issued a few government resolutions (GR) in the regard in 2015 and 2017.

“Instructions will be issued to the authorities concerned to implement the same. But before taking a final decision in this regard, I will hold a meeting with leaders of key parties and organisations in the state to discuss the issue,” he added. Walse Patil, however, did not specify the date for the meetings. When asked whether MNS chief Raj Thackeray too will be invited, the home minister responded in the affirmative.

When asked about Aurangabad police receiving letters that Raj Thackeray should not be allowed to hold a rally there in May, Walse Patil said the local police will take a decision in the regard.

When questioned if the police will remove loudspeakers installed without permissions on temples or mosques, the minister said that it is not the government’s responsibility to install or remove loudspeakers.

“Anyone who wishes to install a loudspeaker should do so as per law, seeking police permission. Loudspeakers cannot be installed if there is no police permission. Those who install loudspeakers, they will have to follow the Supreme Court order and GRs,” he added.

When asked about a possibility of trouble in the backdrop of the loudspeaker controversy, the minister said the government has inputs about pockets in the state where the situation could be tense. “The police have been asked to be fully prepared to face such situations,” he added.

On Amravati MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana’s statements about reciting Hanuman Chalisa outside Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s official residence Varsha in Mumbai, Walse Patil said there was no need to give importance to what they were saying.

The minister further reiterated his statement that a few people were trying to vitiate the atmosphere in the state and that strict action will be taken against such elements.