New Delhi: In what could create political ripples in Maharashtra, Raj Thackeray has declared himself as the successor to Shiv Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray.
The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief made the claim in an interview to a Marathi weekly Lok Prabha.
The interview was done before the court slapped a gag order on him following his rhetoric against the North Indians settled in Maharashtra that led to widespread violence against the community by his party workers.
In the interview, the MNS chief said the Thackeray family had always worked for the rights of the average Maharashtrian and that the 82-year-old Balasaheb Thackeray was not in a position to carry it on for very long.
He said that responsibility now rests in his hands.
Raj once again targeted North Indian migrants and insisted that if they don't leave Mumbai after being requested, his party will force them out.
A few days ago, Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamna had hit out at the MNS for the protests that followed Raj Thackeray's arrest on February 13.
Referring to the death of Ambadas Haribhau Dharrao, a Maharashtrian, during the violent protests by MNS workers in Nashik, the paper had said: "It was a Maharashtrian who was killed in the violence. Unruly MNS workers hurled stones at a Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd bus, which hit Ambadas Haribhau Dharrao, a Marathi manoos.''
Raj Thackeray was granted conditional bail by a Vikhroli court on a surety of Rs 15,000 a few hours after his arrest on Wednesday.
He was charged under Section 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot), 153A (promoting enmity between groups on the basis of places of birth, residence etc) 153D (assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 117 (abetting the commission of any offence by the public) of the IPC.
While granting bail, the court had barred him from speaking to the media or in public and moving in a group of more than five persons.
Fresh Attack on North Indians
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IANS adds: In the interview, the MNS chief continued his tirade against north Indians, saying: "It is the cultural hegemony which some north Indians want to impose on Maharashtrians that I oppose."
"We will go with folded hands and ask them to leave. If they refuse, then we will raise our hands," he said.
Thackeray also lambasted many Hindi television news channels, saying: "I barred them from entering my press conference (last week) because while on one hand they branded me as a hoodlum (goonda), they refrained from using any kind of expletives for north Indian leaders like Amar Singh."
Asked to comment on migrants' contribution towards developing Mumbai, Thackeray said, "Mumbai's development is more due to Parsis, Gujaratis, Marwaris and to some extent Punjabis."
"But look at the people who come from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar: they enter the city with nothing and then after gaining a foothold they never mix up with the local people. In fact, after some time, they start organising Chhath Puja and Uttar Pradesh Day and I object to this cultural hegemony."
Lok Prabha editor Pravin Tokekar said: "The MNS chief has technically not made any inflammatory statement. Even when he says he and his party would go with folded hands to people asking them to leave and only raise hands if they refuse, he treads the ground gingerly without naming any community or party per se."
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