PM reads riot act to Vilasrao: Raj got too long a rope

PM Manmohan Singh, in his letter to Maharashtra CM Vilasrao Deshmukh, had sought 'strongest possible measures' against Raj Thackeray and his men for fomenting trouble against North Indians. A fortnight has gone by and there is no move by the state government to show that it is acting tough with either, say PMO sources.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in his letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, had sought the “strongest possible measures” against Raj Thackeray and his men for fomenting trouble against north Indians. A fortnight has gone by and there is no move by the state government to show that it is acting tough with either, say PMO sources.

“I would request you to take the strongest possible measures against those indulging in such antics and violence. There cannot be any compromise with those who are determined to destroy India’s uniquely liberal and pluralistic society, in which all castes and communities, as well as linguistic minorities, are free to live in whichever part of the country they wish,” Singh wrote to Deshmukh on October 27 after an all-party delegation from Bihar met him that day.

In the letter, the PM pulled up Deshmukh for letting Thackeray and the situation in Mumbai come to such a pass.

“The situation itself had been building up for some time and the utterances and rhetoric of MNS President Raj Thackeray against the presence of outsiders — mainly directed against North Indian and Hindi speaking people — were a precursor to what was to follow. It would appear that far too much latitude had been shown to Raj Thackeray and the MNS.”

“No state government can be a passive spectator when deliberate efforts are made to disturb the peace. More importantly, we need to dispel any impression that people from one part of the country are not welcome in another, and cannot live in peace anywhere they choose. The repercussions of such a development would be grave and could undermine the unity and integrity of the country,” the PM wrote.

Despite such appeals by the PM, the chief minister has kept silent on the MNS chief. He chose to stick only to ordering a high-level probe — as was sought by the PM — into the killing of Bihar boy Rahul Raj in police firing. There has been no response to the PM’s request for steps to mend state Home Minister RR Patil’s statement that Rahul’s killing was a case of “a bullet for bullet’.

“I do believe that today’s incident would have an adverse impact on the situation in Bihar, and the least that can be done is to try and salvage the situation by bordering an inquiry into the circumstances in which the police had to resort to the extreme step of firing. The Home Minister’s statement as has been reported (unless he has been misquoted) is extremely unfortunate and some way will need to be found to make amends. Both these steps need to be taken very urgently,” the PM wrote.

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His letter also called for more security during the Chhath festival that ended first week of November.

“This is an important festival for people from Eastern Indian, and given our country’s record of religious tolerance and the right of every individual to pursue his religion peacefully, it is the bounden duty of the state to ensure that the conduct of the festival is properly managed.