Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena’s antics in Mumbai and other parts of the state was received angrily by many Urdu newspapers. Hindustan Express, in an editorial entitled, ‘Yeh paagal naheen, baaghi hein!’ (they are rebels, not mad!) writes: “What (Vilas Rao) Deshmukh is calling goondaism is certainly not mere goondaism; it is a rebellion against the Constitution and law of the country and an attack on national unity and integration. The government should not brush it aside, labelling it simply as madness. Doing so, would be treason against the country’s Constitution.” Inquilab on October 21 writes; “no politician can reap the political harvest merely by clever tricks. In the case of Raj, his popularity is because of his uncle, and hence, a borrowed one.”

NIC Meeting

Rashtriya Sahara, in an editorial entitled, ‘Integration Council’s meeting without any outcome’ (Oct. 15) says that the attitude of Chief Ministers of NDA-ruled states (blaming minorities for the present disturbances) was “extremely shameful”. The Congress “tried to fool the minorities by making statements, as it has always done... ” The paper also criticised Home Minister Shivraj Patil for his statement that “governments have to maintain some balance while fulfilling their responsibilities of governance.” If this balance means “giving freedom to miscreants to burn places of worship of minorities and harassing educated young persons of minority communities, such a balance can be a danger to the unity and integration of the country and certainly not a part of any government’s responsibility,” the paper writes. Hindustan Express in its editorial (Oct. 14) writes: “This Council’s meeting too is presenting the scene of our Parliament. The members are not at all willing to rise above their political camps and viewpoints.” Mumbai’s Inquilab has spoken about the casual manner in which the Council’s meetings have been organised after long gaps of time. Taking the Congress to task, it says: “Going over the issue of Hindutva in a casual manner once again demonstrates the soft Hindutva of the Congress.” Delhi-based Jadeed Khabar, describing the meeting as “a picnic of political leaders”, made a harsh comment on the PM: “Obviously, can one expect a Prime Minister to match forces with the communal elements when he is hesitant to even name them?”

... contd.