Desperate to grab headlines, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray said ''rapists in Delhi gang-rape incident were from Bihar'' in the Global Konkan Festival here on Saturday.
Elaborating on his favourite eye-catching theme, the MNS leader said: “Whenever I raise the issue of Bihari criminals, I have been abused and targeted but now even Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dixit has commented on the matter. It is important to go to the root of the matter... the criminals who committed the heinous act were all from Bihar.”
Xenophobic politics
Thackeray, known for espousing xenophobic politics, further said that the “statements made by Delhi chief minister clearly hints that migrants were responsible for increase in criminal activities in the state.” Lashing out at the MNS leader’s statement, the Congress termed the statements not only “irresponsible and deplorable but also mad.”
“Such statements are very unfortunate. It may divide the country and weaken our democracy. Politically, a serious thought should be given before speaking out. No statement should be made for personal interest,” party spokesperson Rashid Alvi told Deccan Herald.
State Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said that in the recent past there have been instances when MNS workers and leaders were found to be involved in criminal activities.
In a strongly-worded statement, the Congress recounted past criminal cases and stated: “Last month, a MNS leader was nabbed by Vikhroli Police for raping a minor girl, three years ago...in another incident, a minor house-maid was gang-raped by four persons and all of them were MNS workers...and in Amravati a MNS leader was arrested for raping a girl in April 2011. Thackeray is bereft of issues and that is why he is resorting to such statements so that he can divert attention from his partymen’s actions.”