Justifying his referendum on the demand for a separate state of Vidarbha, Maharashtra Advocate General Shrihari Aney on Tuesday said that constitutional provisions under Article 2 and 3 of the Indian Constitution must be set in motion if 51 per cent of the people want a state
Mumbai: Justifying his referendum on the demand for a separate state of Vidarbha, Maharashtra Advocate General Shrihari Aney on Tuesday said that constitutional provisions under Article 2 and 3 of the Indian Constitution must be set in motion if 51 per cent of the people want a state.
'The statement made by me was in connection with a function that was held where my book, which is about the history of Vidarbha, was released. One of the things that the book deals with is the constant criticism that there is no movement for freedom of Vidarbha. It also says that it is a political issue politicized by politicians whenever they are out of power. It is used as a means of convenience more than anything else,' Aney told ANI.
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'We believe based on referendum that has been held that there is a huge demand for the creation of the state of Vidarbha' We believe that if you truly want to know that the demand is whether a plebiscite or a referendum ought to be taken of the whole state and it should be an official referendum so that nobody can question its integrity or legality,' he added.
He asserted that it should be found whether the people want the state of Vidarbha or not.
'According to me, if 51 per cent of the people want a state, then the constitutional provisions under Article 2 and 3 of the Indian Constitution must be set in motion to create a state,' he said.
He also insisted that he has always considered himself a Marathi and was not afraid of anyone.
'I am not scared with any politician. I don't see any reason to get security but still if they want to protect me then they are welcome,' he said.
Shrihari Aney had yesterday come under fire from the Opposition for seeking a referendum on the demand for a separate state of Vidarbha.
While Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis backed Aney, the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) took objection to Aney's comments.
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