The Hindu : Front Page : Raj Thackeray’s arrest triggers tension, violence

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Wednesday, Oct 22, 2008
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Raj Thackeray’s arrest triggers tension, violence

Special Correspondent

— Photos: Sashi Ashiwal, Vivek Bendre, Ranjeet Kumar

High drama: Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, who was arrested in the wee hours of Tuesday, coming out of the Bandra court after he was granted bail. He was quickly booked in another case in Kalyan. In the picture at the centre, MNS supporters who went on the rampage are being chased away by the police. At right, railway job aspirants demonstrating at the Patna railway station in protest against the attacks on them by MNS activists in Mumbai.

MUMBAI: A sense of fear prevailed in the city and most of the State after Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Raj Thackeray’s arrest on Tuesday.

While Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh exhorted Mumbaikars and people in other parts of the State to go about life as usual, there were few takers.

In the wake of the attacks, the Maharashtra government is likely to pass an ordinance to make political parties responsible and pay up for damage caused in the course of protests and other actions. The draft ordinance may be discussed by the State Cabinet on Wednesday, according to Deputy Chief Minister R.R. Patil.

He told journalists that over 1,700 people were arrested from all over the State as a preventive measure after the attacks on north Indian students by the MNS.

In the city itself 1,000 MNS workers were arrested, some of them as a preventive measure, according to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations) Amar Jadhav. There were 60 untoward incidents reported from all over the city of which 12 offences were registered, he said.

Since 3 a.m., more than 250 taxis were damaged in the city and suburbs up to Dahisar, according to A.L. Quadros of the Bombay Taximens Union. Twenty-two taxis were damaged in Tardeo alone. The MNS workers allegedly damaged the vehicles and also inflicted minor injuries on the drivers.

Mr. Quadros said that when the government knew it was going to arrest Raj Thackeray it should have put adequate security measures in place. Most of the taxis belonged to north Indians who were busy all morning registering complaints and assessing the extent of damage. The last time the government had paid them Rs. 200 per taxi and the Union had refused to accept it.

Congress spokesperson Sanjay Nirupam’s office in Andheri west was attacked on Monday night by miscreants. Mr. Nirupam said this was not the way to fight a political battle. “It’s better the MNS attacks people like me. We can at least defend ourselves unlike the poor students, the auto drivers or the taxi wallas.”

Anticipating trouble, most people chose to stay at home. Most parts of the city wore a deserted look with trains running empty. Shops were closed in many places and vehicles, including autorickshaws stayed off the road.

Six additional platoons of the State Reserve Police and three of the Rapid Action Force ) were deployed in addition to the existing 40,000 police personnel and 25 regular SRP platoons, Mr. Jadhav said.

Re-examinations

Special Correspondent writes from New Delhi:

Railway Minister Lalu Prasad on Tuesday announced that the Railway Recruitment Board, Mumbai, would conduct fresh examinations for candidates who were assaulted and prevented from taking the examination by MNS activists.

Talking to journalists, Mr. Prasad said the examinations had been successfully completed at most centres. The MNS activists had disrupted examinations in 13 centres in sub-urban Mumbai. Mr. Prasad welcomed the arrest of Raj Thackeray but added that the step was not sufficient to put down elements, which were bent upon spreading disunity in the country.

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