Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray issued a warning after Pakistan Zindabad slogans were reportedly raised at a protest march of the Popular Front of India in Pune and said if Hindus and Marathis decide to take the matter into their hands, there will be unrest during the festive times. “Don’t make me say it here,” he said in his statement issued on Saturday. “If the Hindus of Hindustan and our Marathis Hindus decide to take the matter in their hands, then what these scoundrel will face? Don’t make me say it here! If this happens, there will be an unrest during the festive times. So it’s better to put an end to these anti-national activities on an urgent basis,” his statement read.
If slogans such as ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ ‘ Allahu Akbar’ are going to be proclaimed in our Pune city, then our country’s Hindus are not going to keep quiet. Rather, it’s better to urgently put an end to this disease of anti-national elements.@AmitShah @Dev_Fadnavis
‘Go to Pakistan’: Raj Thackeray’s message
To those who were allegedly raising the slogans, Raj Thackeray said, “If such is their mental state, then take your religion and go to Pakistan. This kind of drama is not going to be allowed in our country.”
“I earnestly request the central and state home ministers to take the sternest action against such outfits that even the phonetic sound of ‘PA’ will not be uttered from them. If not, then our country’s Hindus will not take it lying down. I don’t wish to go into the details of what may happen,” Raj Thackeray said in his statement.
Citing videos, the BJP on Saturday alleged that pro-Pakistan slogans were raised at a PFI protest rally outside the district collectors office on Friday. The Pune Police said they will verify the videos and will take action accordingly. The protest was against the joint NIA-ED-state police crackdown on PFI leaders on allegations of terror funding.
Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole condemned the alleged incident and sought a ban on the PFI. “The Central government has the power to ban organisations like PFI under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). Congress had earlier made such a demand. Is the BJP not accepting the demand for its own political motive?” he asked.
Both chief minister Eknath Shinde and deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis condemned the alleged incident and promised action against it.
“The government should immediately put a stop to such activities. The NIA raided the PFI and arrested many members. Why were they arrested? The reason being they are funding terror activities in the country. This is such a serious issue, in short, this is an anti-national activity,” Raj Thackeray said.