Make UT out of K'tka's Marathi villages: Chavan

Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan on Tuesday said the 865 Marathi-speaking villages in Karnataka (comprising of Belgaum, Karwar, Gulbarga and Bidar) should be made a Union Territory.

Earlier, the Maharashtra legislative assembly was adjourned for 10 minutes to protest against the lathicharge by Karnataka police on Marathi-speaking people in Belgaum, who were protesting the Centre's affidavit in the Supreme Court on the Belgaum border row.

Soon after the Question Hour, Nationalist Congress Party MLA Jeetendra Awhad said the House should condemn the police lathicharge on the demonstrators in Belgaum and adjourn the House for 10 minutes to express solidarity with them.

The treasury benches supported the demand and moved into the well shouting slogans condemning the Karnataka government. Leader of Opposition Eknath Khadse said the Opposition had no objection condemning the Karnataka government, but the House should also condemn the Centre's stand for filing an affidavit in the Supreme Court stating that Belgaum was a part of Karnataka.

The Opposition members also shouted slogans against the Central government. Speaker Dilip Walse-Patil announced the adjournment of the House for 10 minutes to express solidarity with the Marathi-speaking people of Belgaum.

Meanwhile, the Maharashtra Congress on Tuesday held a meeting in Mumbai to discuss and formulate strategy on issues like Belgaum border dispute and James Laine's controversial book on Shivaji.

Kripashankar Singh, Narayan Rane, Patangrao Kadam, Harshvardhan Patil, Subash Zanak, Ramesh Bagwe and Eknath Gaikwad were some of the senior party leaders present at the meeting which was convened by Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee chief Manikrao Thakre