MNS chief Raj Thackeray sets May 3 ‘deadline’ for MVA on loudspeakers at mosques across Maharashtra

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena MNS president Raj Thackeray has appealed to the state and the Centre to ensure that Muslim worship places remove loudspeakers from their premises by May 3 or else his party will intensify its agitation for the cause which he said wasnrsquot religious but a social oneThackeray was speaking at a public rally in Thane on Tuesday The speech came in response to the political reactions to his Gudi Padva address at Shivaji Park early this month He dismissed the charge that MNS was the BJPrsquos TeamB because he had been speaking about Hindutva and removing the speakers from the masjids for several years ldquoWhich was the party that sent the Pakistani artists packing Which was the party that raised a voice against Raza Academyrsquos violence against our policewomenrdquo he askedHe said he and his party colleagues were prepared to face court cases in pressing for the demand if the speakers were not removed after the deadline He reiterated his partyrsquos resolve to play Hanuman Chalisa in front of masjids and go further if the lsquorequestrsquo was not honoured Thackeray lambasted the Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar his MP daughter Supriya Sule his nephew Ajit Pawar and his estranged cousin and CM Uddhav Thackeray and his Shiv Sena colleaguesldquoI havenrsquot said anything wrong about the speakers Religion should be kept at home One cannot block roads and trouble the people by blaring loudspeakers If you donrsquot listen to our demands we will play Hanuman Chalisa We donrsquot disturb communal harmony We donrsquot want riots The problem of speakers troubles all of us Even my Muslim friends have endorsed my position on this issuerdquo said ThackerayHe dared the state government to do whatever it wants ldquoWe will not step back Please call the maulvis of masjids in the state and tell them to remove loudspeakers by May 3 Ramzan Eid will be on May 3 We will wait till then because we also celebrate festivals However the trouble cannot remain 365 days a yearrdquo he said He reminded the state and the Centre of the Supreme Court observation on why the speakers cannot be allowed ldquoIf you donrsquot do it because of vote politics then we canrsquot sit idle This particular problem is countrywiderdquoThackeray wanted the Modi government to legislate laws to have a uniform civil code in the country and measures to control Indiarsquos enormous population growth ldquoItrsquos not that Irsquom jealous of lsquothemrsquo having five in their families but it is because the country will explode one day These are essential and important things for the countryrdquo lsquoExplained position to EDrsquoThackeray said he had explained to the Enforcement Directorate his role in a company which he had quit within a year ldquoI got the ED notice because of the company ILampFS which I was part of for a year I went to the ED I donrsquot fear anyonerdquo he said denying that he was served notice because he spoke against PM Narendra Modi ldquoI have spoken against Modi openly and opposed him And I will speak against him again if need be Now it is you to face the music because you the MVA have eaten cow dungrdquo he said adding that he also had other important subjects to deal with while addressing his party workersAttacks the PawarsResponding to Sulersquos charge that the ED action did it to him he said the MP had double standards ldquoAjit Pawar and his sisters are raided by the ED but you are spared Why Sharad Pawar and Modi enjoy good relations despite the EDrsquos action against Ajit Pawar It seems Sharad Pawar himself tells Modi about the EDrsquos next target Pawar has met Modi earlier and he met him again after action against Sanjay Rautrdquo he said adding that nobody knew what the NCP had actually told Modi in the recent meeting He said Pawarrsquos happiness was deceiving and Raut might find himself in trouble without knowing about it ldquoHe will not know when he is hung upside down He will know the reason very laterdquoHe said that Sharad Pawar was responsible for triggering and intensifying caste wars in Maharashtra since 1999 by forming proxy organisations like Sambhaji Brigade that targets other caste groups ldquoPawar never takes the name of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj because he fears the Muslim voters He is an atheist who defines religions in his own ways The truth is that Maharashtra has been the state of Chhatrapati who first raised the saffron flag against the green flagrdquo added Thackeray appealing to the people to quit caste bias which ultimately will destroy the state but not before extending benefits to the divisive leaders