Will support fight to include Marathi-speaking Karnataka areas in Maharashtra : DyCM Ajit Pawar
Pune(PTI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Sunday said they would continue to support the fight of Marathi-speaking people residing in border areas of neighbouring Karnataka to include those places in Maharashtra.
He was addressing a gathering in Pune city on the occasion of Maharashtra's foundation day. The western state was formed on this day in 1960.
"While we are celebrating 62 years of formation of Maharashtra, we regret that the Marathi-speaking villages in Bidar, Bhalki, Belgaum, Karwar, Nippani and other places in Karnataka could not be merged with Maharashtra. The citizens of Maharashtra and its government are with their fight to be part of Maharashtra. I assure that we would keep supporting their fight till these villages become part of Maharashtra," Pawar said.
Maharashtra claims certain areas, including Belgaum, Karwar nd Nippani which are part of Karnataka, contending that majority population in these areas is Marathi-speaking.
The case of Maharashtra-Karnataka bounding dispute is pending before the Supreme Court.
Talking to reporters after the programme, Pawar expressed concern over a large number of swords recently seized from parts of Maharashtra and said the state police department was keeping an eye on it and trying to find people behind such activities.
On Wednesday, police had seized 89 swords and a dagger from an SUV in Maharashtra's Dhule district and arrested four people in this connection.
Pawar said this indicates there may be some people who want to be involved in anti-social activities.
"We have asked police to conduct a probe into the seizure of such weapons. We appeal to everyone to maintain religious harmony. While expressing their thoughts, people should take care that their words do not provoke sentiments of any community," he added.
Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil, who was also present in the programme, said political meetings, rallies and gatherings will go on and the police department will work to maintain peace and harmony during the Maharashtra foundation day celebrations.
"They (police) are prepared for any kind of situation. I appeal to everyone to maintain social harmony," Walse Patil said when asked about various political events slated in Maharashtra on the state's foundation day.
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Prime organiser of Messi event in Kolkata arrested over ‘mismanagement’ after stadium chaos
Kolkata (PTI): The police on Saturday arrested Satadru Datta, the prime organiser of the Lionel Messi football event at Salt Lake Stadium here, following widespread chaos at the venue, which prompted the Argentine World Cup-winning captain to leave the field early.
Taking suo motu cognisance of the stadium unrest, Datta was held by the Bidhannagar Police for “mismanagement” of the event from the Kolkata airport, where he had gone to see off Messi and his entourage on their way to Hyderabad.
"We are looking into whether there was any mismanagement from the organiser's side, which led to the chaos at the stadium. He has been detained, and the police have now brought the situation under control," West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar said at a press conference.
A senior police officer later confirmed that Dutta has been arrested. Till reports last received, the police were interrogating him and his manager inside one of the departure lounges of the airport.
The organiser has given in writing that he will refund the prices of tickets he sold to the disappointed spectators, Kumar said.
What was supposed to be a marquee football spectacle turned into widespread violence and disorder at the stadium after Messi’s brief and tightly ring-fenced appearance, his first at the venue since 2011, left large sections of the crowd frustrated, as they failed to catch a glimpse of their superstar despite having travelled from far and wide, paying hefty sums for tickets.
Police said they were also investigating how organisers allowed sale of bottled waters and beverages inside the stadium premises, which are banned items during such events.
Thousands of water bottles were used as missiles and lobbed inside the pitch by angry spectators, who also uprooted bucket seats from the gallery and used them as ammunition inside the field against the defending police and security personnel.
Spectators alleged that water bottles were being sold at a massive premium inside the stadium despite police disallowing such items from outside at the entry gates.
Police agreed there was an underlying tension in the galleries on account of Messi not showing his footballing skills on the field, which only got aggravated after a bunch of VIPs, including State Sports Minister Aroop Biswas and unidentified people, blocked the football icon’s view during the limited time he spent on the ground.
“We are on the job, and will ensure that whoever is responsible for what happened today at Salt Lake Stadium will be punished, and action will be taken against the authorities concerned,” said Jawed Shamim, ADG, Law and Order.
