October 23, 2008	Thursday	Shawwal 23, 1429

MUMBAI, Oct 22: Three people were killed in overnight rioting in India’s Maharashtra state after the arrest of a firebrand politician accused of inciting violence against migrant workers, police said on Wednesday.

State police chief A.N. Roy said that the three died in clashes between supporters of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Raj Thackeray and what he called “outsiders” near the town of Kalyan, northeast of Mumbai.

Roy said that a “large” number of police officers had been deployed to maintain order and was confident they could contain the violence.

“We have made all preparations,” he said.

Thackeray was arrested on Tuesday and later released on conditional bail in connection with weekend attacks on northern Indians who had come to India’s financial capital to seek work on the railways.

His party strongly supports jobs for local people and promotes the use of the Marathi language and culture, which frequently puts it at odds with wider efforts to encourage a stronger national identity and a mobile workforce.

MNS activists claimed Maharashtrians were under-represented in the railways’ recruitment process and attacked examination centres and candidates.

On Sunday one northern Indian man died after falling off a train, allegedly after being attacked by MNS supporters, and northern Indians were also among the dead in the Kalyan clashes, media reported.

Some 2,000 people have been arrested in connection with the disturbances and as a preventative measure ahead of Thackeray’s high-profile court appearance in central Mumbai on Tuesday.

But stone-throwing crowds still clashed with baton-wielding police outside the court and across the state. Taxis, auto-rickshaws, buses and shops were attacked while attempts were made to burn other vehicles and set up roadblocks.

Thackeray was given conditional bail but still faces questioning on a number of separate charges in connection with the weekend violence, including inciting rioting, destroying public property and murder for the railway death.

His MNS is an offshoot of his uncle Bal Thackeray’s Shiv Sena party, which has pushed a similar “Maharashtra for Marathis” agenda since the mid-1960s. The party changed the former Bombay’s name to Mumbai in 1995.

Shiv Sena activists were also identified in a judicial report as being involved in the deadly communal riots between Hindus and Muslims in Mumbai in 1992-93 that left more than 1,000 people dead.

Thackeray was first arrested in February this year, also for inciting violence, after party workers attacked northern Indian taxi drivers and hawkers in Mumbai, accusing them of stealing jobs.

He reportedly condoned the latest clashes and warned that his arrest would have grave consequences and see the state “set on fire.”

Questions have been raised about why it took the state so long to act against Thackeray, while some commentators have raised the possibility that his arrest will give him a political boost.

The head of The Hindustan Times’ political bureau, Shailesh Gaikwad, said Thackeray could now be seen as a “martyr to the Marathi cause” which could widen his support base.—AFP