Housing woes of Marathis to be Sena’s poll plank

With the assembly elections just two months away, the Shiv Sena announced on Monday that its focus will be on the issue of housing for the poor and middle class Marathi speaking people. "The Marathis have the first right over cheap houses built by Mhada and the Shiv Sena will fight for their rights till its logical end," the party executive president Uddhav Thackeray said.

He was speaking at a rally in Bandra after leading a morcha from Mahim Fort to Mhada headquarters. The morcha was aimed at demanding affordable houses for the locals.
Thackeray hinted that the Sena was planning an agitation on the lines of its agitation for loan waiver to the farmers in rural Maharashtra.

Thackeray warned the state government against ignoring the party's demand. "We had invited the chief minister to accept the memorandum of our demands but he did not come. If our demands are not met, the morcha will not remain dhadak (huge) but it will turn into bhadak (fiery).”

“As of now, we are folding hands. If they think it is our weakness, they must know that these hands also know how to slap them. We will not allow the ministers to roam in the city if our demand is ignored,” Thackeray said.

"It is the right of the Mumbaikars to get cheaper houses. When we will come to power, we will teach the builders a lesson otherwise I will not call myself Balasaheb Thackeray's son," he added. He also asked power consumers not to pay their bills if the tariff is not reduced.