Defying police warning on making provocative speeches, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Saturday resumed his tirade against north Indians, saying he would not allow them to 'destroy' the culture of Maharashtra.
"Let the government arrest me if it wants. I am not afraid. I maintain my stand that only Maharashtra Day should be celebrated in Maharashtra," he told a rally in Mumbai to mark his party's second anniversary.
Raj warned if the 'dadagiri' of north Indians continued in Mumbai and Maharashtra, he would be compelled to make them leave the metropolis.
Claiming that Marathi-speaking people were also responsible for the 'conspiracy' by north Indians to take over the Marathi culture, Raj made a slew of appeals to the 'sons-of-the soil' to preserve the 'rich language' and ensure the economic emancipation of locals.
Raj appealed to the rationing, ward and regional transport authority officers not to give illegal licences to the north Indians for 'petty gains'. Giving out select statistics stating that the number of Maharashtrians recruited by various Central organisations was dismal, Raj wondered what MPs from the state were doing.
"Our kids are not being told about the kind of industries being set up in the state," he said, adding, "When are we going to be cautious against the efforts to conquer us? You will have to keep the fire within you alive so that future Maharashtrians are happy."
Image: Raj Thackeray addressing the gathering in Mumbai
Photograph: PTI Photo
Also read: What drove Raj Thackeray's party to violence
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