Centre should declare 'Karnataka-occupied Maharashtra' as Union Territory: Ex-CM Uddhav Thackeray
Nagpur, Dec 26: Former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday said in the state Legislative Council that the central government should declare "Karnataka-occupied Maharashtra" areas as a Union Territory.
Speaking in the Upper House on the raging boundary dispute between Maharashtra and Karnataka, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Thackeray said it is not just a case of language and border, but of "humanity".
He said Marathi-speaking people have been residing in the border villages from generations. Their daily life, language and lifestyle is Marathi, he said.
Till the issue is pending before the Supreme Court, the "Karnataka-occupied Maharashtra should be declared as a Union Territory by the central government," he said.
Thackeray also asked whether Maharashtra Chief Minister (Eknath Shinde) has said a word about the issue and questioned the state government's stand on it.
The matter is sub-judice and there is a status quo on it, but who is spoiling the atmosphere? he asked, apparently targeting the Karnataka government.
The Karnataka legislature has reiterated the state's stand that the border issue is a settled one, and not an inch of land will be given to the neighbouring state.
Thackeray questioned the central government's role as "guardian" of both the states.
"Has the central government acted as guardian. We expect the central government to act as the guardian," he said.
He also said (members of) both the Houses should watch the movie "Case for Justice" and read the Mahajan Commission report (on the border issue).
When the Belagavi Municipal Corporation passed a resolution to merge with Maharashtra, action was taken against the corporation, Thackeray said.
Similarly, some gram panchayats of Maharashtra had demanded a merger with Telangana. Does the Shinde government have little courage to even act against these gram panchayats? he asked.
Rajya Sabha member and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut was present in the visitors' gallery of the House.
The border issue dates back to 1957 after the reorganisation of states on linguistic lines.
Maharashtra laid claim to Belagavi, which was part of the erstwhile Bombay Presidency, as it has a sizeable Marathi-speaking population. It also laid claim to more than 800 Marathi-speaking villages which are currently part of Karnataka.
Karnataka maintains the demarcation done on linguistic lines as per the States Reorganisation Act and the 1967 Mahajan Commission Report as final.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
