Council adjourned over desecration issue

MUMBAI: The desecration of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray's wife Meenatai's statue rocked the Maharashtra legislative council on Monday, leading to its adjournment for the day, after Opposition members created a furore, alleging a 'foreign hand' in the incident.

 

The House was adjourned twice before Deputy Chairman Vasan Davkhare announced that in keeping with the Opposition's wishes it was being adjourned for the day.

 

Earlier, Leader of the Opposition Pandurang Phundkar, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Nitin Gadkari and others demanded that the business of the House be put aside and the desecration issue be discussed.

 

However, House Chairman Shivajirao Deshmukh disallowed the demand, leading to the Opposition storming the well and shouting slogans.

 

The House was adjourned twice for 15 minutes each, before Davkhare adjourned it for the day.
    
Earlier, while demanding a discussion on the issue under Rule 293, Gadkari alleged a 'foreign hand' in the desecration of Meenatai's statue as well as idols of Lord Ganesh and Hanuman in a nearby gymnasium, saying the government was turning a blind eye to the mushrooming of anti-national elements in the state because of votebank politics.

 

"The government does not bother about Pakistani flags raised in the state because it is more bothered about saving its chair," Gadkari said, adding the people allegedly responsible for the desecration had been identified by residents but no arrests had been made.