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‘If you resort to dadagiri…’: Uddhav’s warning to Ranas on Hanuman Chalisa row

'If you resort to dadagiri...': Uddhav's warning to Ranas on Hanuman Chalisa row

NEW DELHI: Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday broke his silence on the controversy around the recital of Hanuman Chalisa outside his house and issued a stern warning to his detractors.
Speaking at an event, the chief minister warned MP Navneet Kaur Rana and her MLA husband Ravi that if they resort to “dadagiri”, his government knows how to counter it.
“If you want to recite Hanuman Chalisa, call me and come home. But if you resort to ‘dadagiri’, we know how to crumble it,” Maharashtra CM Thackeray was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Dismissing the controversy around the issue of loudspeakers at religious places, Thackery said that many people have “acidity in their stomachs” due to the developments taking place in Mumbai.
“They only want to speak on loudspeakers … I don’t care about them at all,” he said.
On allegations that Shiv Sena has “ignored Hindutva”, Thackery said that his party’s Hindutva is ‘Gada Dhari’ like Lord Hanuman.
“Is Hindutva a dhoti or what? Our Hindutva is ‘Gada Dhari’ like Lord Hanuman,” the Shiv Sena supremo said.
Echoing Thackeray, Maharashtra deputy CM said that many people were trying to spoil the atmosphere of the state. “If you wish to recite Hanuman Chalisa then chant it at your home. Don’t you have a home of yours? Many people are just trying to spoil the atmosphere,” ANI quoted him as saying.
Last week, the Rana couple had given a call for the chanting of Hanuman Chalisa outside Matoshri, the residence of Thackerays, on Saturday 9 am.
The announcement by the politician couple had triggered angry protests by Shiv Sena workers who laid a siege to their residence in the Khar area on Saturday, seeking their apology.

The Ranas later withdrew their call but were arrested by the Mumbai police for “creating enmity between two groups”.
Earlier on Monday, the Bombay high court quashed a plea by the Rana couple to quash the FIR against them.
(With inputs from agencies)

Darshan Shah
the authorDarshan Shah