Sena,BJP slam MNS,support Nitish

Stating that they would have been the first to oppose political posturing by Bihar leaders in Mumbai,Sena said that they support Nitish for his development work. Such leaders bring development to their states,ensuring that people are not forced to migrate to Mumbai. We should support such leaders. We have always praised the work being done by Nitish Kumar in Bihar, it said.

Sena MP Sanjay Raut said that he had interacted with several leaders from Bihar regarding the event and learnt that they had strict instructions to stay away from it. Only Nitish Kumar as the Chief Minister is going to attend the function; its clear that the event is a cultural function, said Raut.

BJP leader of Opposition in the legislative council Vinod Tawde said that the MNS went solely by media reports. He said: Nitish Kumars work over the last 10 years actually supports the MNS cause as development in Bihar has reduced migration by 25 per cent. The MNS should have taken this in a positive manner.

PM-like security cover for Nitish

Unwilling to take any chances despite MNS chief Raj Thackeray climbing down on his threat to disrupt Bihar Day celebrations here,the police pulled out all stops in providing a heavy security cordon for Bihar CM Nitish Kumar on Sunday. Senior Mumbai Police officers said the security formation around the main celebration was equivalent to the one that is kept for the PM.

Mumbai Police Commissioner Arup Patnaik said the honeycomb pattern of security in which there are multiple tiers of security so that if there is breach at one level,it could be contained without compromising overall security had been employed.

The protocol usually adopted for the PMs visit was put in place and a zone of 45 feet from the dais was insulated. The special security cordon was extended to 100 m from the last man sitting at the ground,with no vehicle allowed to park anywhere within that distance.