The Maharashtra government has decided to discuss with the Centre the use of loudspeakers at places of worship, the issue at the pivot of growing tensions between the ruling Shiv Sena and the Opposition BJP.
BJP leaders decided to skip Monday’s all-party meeting called by the Shiv Sena-led state government, reports ndtv.com.
The meeting was chaired by Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar to discuss the ongoing row over the recitation of Hanuman Chalisa and the use of loudspeakers at religious sites in the state.
Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis alleged that Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was behind the arrest of Independent MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana for having announced to recite the Hanuman Chalisa outside his residence.
Fadnavis also blamed the Chief Minister for the attack on BJP leader Kirit Somaiya outside Khar police station on April 23. "If someone has taken the role of Hitler, we felt it's better to fight instead of communicating," Fadnavis reportedly said.
Hitting out at Uddhav Thackeray, Fadnavis said there was little use of an all-party meeting when the Chief Minister himself did not attend.
"Whatever is happening in Mumbai is happening at the behest of the Chief Minister. In such a situation, if the Chief Minister himself is not present in the (today's) meeting, then what is the use of it?," he said.
After the all-party meeting, state Minister Aaditya Thackeray announced that a decision had been arrived at to discuss the issue with the Union government.
Apart from the BJP, Maharashtra Chief Minister Udhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) Chief Raj Thackeray also skipped the meeting.
Saamna editorial
The Shiv Sena hit out at the BJP on Monday and said that the Hindutva ideology was a culture and not chaos, reports PTI.
An editorial in the Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' claimed the BJP's "rotten brain" was behind independent MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana's earlier call to recite Hanuman Chalisa outside Maharashtra Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray's private residence 'Matoshree', that resulted in angry protests by Shiv Sainiks outside the couple's home here on Saturday.
The Marathi daily alleged that the Rana couple wanted to vitiate the city's atmosphere, and said they should conduct this programme in the office lobby of Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Why Matoshree?
“Hindutva is doing fine in Maharashtra because it is being led by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. There is no restriction on reciting Hanuman Chalisa in the state, but why was there an insistence to recite it outside Matoshree?" the editorial asked.
"The chaos resorted to by the BJP cannot be supported. Hindutva is a culture, not chaos," it said.
MNS Chief Raj Thackeray had made a strong pitch for removing loudspeakers from mosques earlier this month. Raj Thackeray had said that if the state government did not remove the high-decibel loudspeakers from mosques before May 3, MNS workers would play the Hanuman Chalisa in front of mosques.
Allegations of conspiracy
As a result political temperatures in Maharashtra have heated up over the last few days. On Sunday, state Home Minister alleged that efforts were on by some people to create an atmosphere conducive for the imposition of President's Rule in the state.
Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut also had recently alleged that the BJP was behind the demands for removing loudspeakers from mosques and reciting Hanuman Chalisa.
He said that intelligence inputs suggested a conspiracy was underway to create communal tension in Maharashtra and recommend President's Rule by dismissing the tripartite Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.
