Sena rests migrant plank, now says it was not on agenda

Raut, who is known for his proximity to Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray, said a campaign against Biharis “is not on our political agenda”. “Actually, it has never been so, but we felt called upon to retaliate when some members of Parliament from Bihar like Prabhunath Singh and Devendra Prasad Yadav attacked Balasaheb (Thackeray),” he said. “A true Shiv Sainik would not take such attacks lying down and we did reply to them.”

The so-called provocation from the other side apart, the Sena is no longer under pressure to match Raj Thackeray’s anti-Bihari rhetoric to protect its own Marathi constituency against erosion. Raj has been forced to keep quiet following a police gag order barring him from holding rallies and addressing the media. Since no such order would last long, the competitive game has the potential to recur later. The move has already paid Raj a rich political dividend — he has been able to re-emerge from the sidelines. According to sources, MNS has managed to attract fresh recruits, causing worry to not just the Shiv Sena, but also the NCP.

As far as statements of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar are concerned, Raut said, “We have taken them in our stride.” He felt as chief minister, he has to take that position and “we understand his difficulty”. However, he described him as “a competent person, who is sincerely trying to develop Bihar.” Having said this, Raut registered his indignation over attempts by RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav to project certain areas of Maharashtra as pockets of people from Bihar and UP. “Who are Lalu, Mulayam, Abu Azmi and Kripa Shankar Singh to present themselves as messiahs of immigrants from UP in Mumbai? How can regional leaders of other states come and indulge in Dadagiri in Maharashtra?”

“Our message to them is leave Maharashtra to Maharashtrians and there are enough national and state parties around to take care of our state,” he said.

Shiv Sena, he pointed out, had never tried to project itself as a party of Maharashtrians in states like Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan, where Marathi-speaking people have a sizeable presence. “We have gone to other states only on the Hindutva-plank,” he added.