0
MUMBAI, Feb 12: The Hindu right-wing Shiv Sena party roared back into power in Mumbai on Tuesday and immediately warned of tightened restrictions on outsiders moving to the city.
With all but three seats declared from Sunday’s election to the 227-member Mumbai Municipal Corporation, the Shiv Sena won 100 seats, while its ally the Hindu nationalist BJP, party took 35.
“The voting pattern clearly tells that the people of Mumbai and of Maharashtra want our alliance to rule the civic body and also the state,” Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray said.
The state of Maharashtra, of which Mumbai is the capital, is currently controlled by an alliance led by the Congress party.
“Every day around 350 new families enter Mumbai. This influx is killing the city and creating health, hygiene and education-related problems. This has to stop at any cost,” Thackeray said.
“Now that the (Hindu) saffron flag is once again at the municipal corporation, these issues will be tackled with strict discipline.”
In the previous municipal election, the Shiv Sena had taken 103 seats and the BJP 26.
Thackeray is India’s most high-profile right-wing Hindu politician who has made no attempt to hide his anti-Muslim leanings.
His extreme nationalism was most recently on display in a Shiv Sena campaign against St Valentine’s Day — a theme he returned to on Tuesday.
“Valentine’s Day is a cultural influence on our land and we will stick to our guns. We will oppose such celebrations. We do not need westerners to teach us how to love,” he said. The BJP is in power nationally.
MANIPUR: Separatists in India’s northeastern state of Manipur have gone into intimidation overdrive ahead of local elections — triggering bomb blasts, abducting candidates and attacking their homes, officials said on Tuesday.
Manipur police chief A.A. Siddiqui said unidentified militants on Tuesday attacked the home of Amutombi Singh, a candidate of opposition Congress party, in the Mayong area of provincial capital Imphal.
“A portion of the boundary wall was damaged in the blast although no one was injured,” the police chief said.
In separate attacks in Imphal overnight, armed gunmen opened fire on the homes of Kunjo Kishore, another Congress candidate, and S. Lala Singh of the regional Manipur People’s Party.
“In both incidents, security forces retaliated and the gunmen fled with no casualties reported,” Siddiqui said.
Militants on Monday night abducted three workers of another political party from Andro, near Imphal, he said.
“All these attacks are part of a campaign by militants to create some terror and realize extortion money from the candidates ahead of the polls,” the police chief said.
Manipur goes to the polls on Feb 14 and 21 to elect a 60-member assembly.
On Monday, gunmen attacked the homes of two candidates from the Federal Party of Manipur on the outskirts of Imphal.
During the past fortnight, militants have attacked homes of at least a dozen former ministers killing two people, including a paramilitary soldier.—AFP
