If you do Dadagiri, then we know how to break it up, says Uddhav Thackeray

Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray warned those who are backing Independent MP Navneet Rana and her husband, Independent MLA Ravi Rana in the Hanuman Chalisa row. The couple was arrested on Saturday.

The Shiv Sena leader said those who want to come home to chant Hanuman Chalisa are welcome. "But, if you do Dadagiri, we know how to break it up." He added that Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray taught us that through Hindutva.

The MP-MLA couple had accused Shiv Sena of deviating from its roots for not backing the call for removing loudspeakers from mosques. They also threatened to gather outside CM Thackery's house and recite Hanuman Chalisa.

The Maharashtra CM said Sadhus have been frequenting his house since the days of his father Bal Thackeray and they still come, reported NDTV.

BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis criticised the police action against the Ranas and asked: "If Hanuman Chalisa is not chanted in Maharashtra, will it be chanted in Pakistan?" He further stated that if reciting Hanuman Chalisa is sedition, then all of us will indulge in this sedition.

The Bombay High Court said the action against the Ranas is justified as their threat has created a law-and-order problem.

Judges rejected Navneet Rana's plea and said a declaration that a person would recite religious verses at another person's place or in a public place is a breach of personal liberty. "With great power comes great responsibility (and) persons in public life are expected to act responsibly."