Uddhav dares PM to speak on border row during Maha visit

A day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Nagpur, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday said Modi should make his stand clear on the Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute which is simmering once again.

Leaders of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in Maharashtra slammed Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai's statement that a meeting between a delegation of Maharashtra MPs and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the issue would not make any difference to the border dispute.

Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party president Chandrashekar Bawankule, meanwhile, said the Supreme Court should pass judgement on the border dispute soon as the situation is getting 'tense' and law and order issues have been reported in border areas.

The dispute has put the BJP in a spot as it is in power in both the states.

Speaking at the inauguration of the 42nd Marathwada Sahitya Sammelan (literary meet) in Jalna district, Thackeray, a former chief minister, said Modi should speak about the issue.

"PM Narendra Modi is coming to inaugurate Nagpur-Mumbai Expressway and we welcome him. During his visit, he should clarify his stand on the Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute," Thackeray said.

"He should speak about the Karnataka chief minister who is staking claim on some villages in Maharashtra," the Sena (UBT) president added.

The decades-old border row has heated up in the last couple of weeks with leaders from both states making controversial statements.

Incidents of violence were also reported from both sides of the border.

The dispute dates back to 1957 when the states were being reorganised on linguistic lines.

Maharashtra laid claim to Belagavi (formerly Belgaum), which was part of the erstwhile Bombay Presidency, as it has a sizeable Marathi-speaking population.

It also staked claim to 814 Marathi-speaking villages which are currently part of Karnataka.

Karnataka maintains that the demarcation on linguistic lines as per the States Reorganisation Act and 1967 Mahajan Commission Report was final.

Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekar Bawankule said in Nagpur that the Supreme Court should hear the writ petitions related to the border dispute case urgently.

The Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis government in Maharashtra has made its submissions strongly before apex court, he said.

"I feel that no inflammatory speeches should be made by both sides. There is no meaning to what the Karnataka chief minister says or what we say. The issue will be permanently resolved if the result of the case in the apex court comes out," he added.

Bawankule also accused leaders of the MVA (which comprises Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), Nationalist Congress Party and Congress) of vitiating the atmosphere for political gains.

"This case should be taken up urgently by requesting the Supreme Court as the situation is getting tense and incidents of law and order being disturbed are cropping up," the BJP leader said.

He also appealed to Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai not to make statements 'against the interests of people of Maharashtra'.

In Mumbai, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Arvind Sawant criticised Bommai's dismissive statement that the meeting between a delegation of MPs from Maharashtra and Amit Shah.

Sawant, who was part of the delegation that met Shah, said the latter had taken serious note of the issue and assured that he would call a meeting of the CMs of both the states.

However, Bommai's statement showed he did not respect the Central government, Sawant said, adding it seems such comments were being made with an eye on Assembly polls in Karnataka which are due in 2023, and has the blessings of the Centre.

"When the matter is pending in the Supreme Court, Karnataka went ahead and changed the name of Belgaum to Belagavi. It then constructed a legislature building there and holds a session of the Assembly annually. All this is illegal," Sawant claimed.

Slamming Bommai, Natioinalist Congress Party spokesperson Clyde Crasto said, "Isn't the statement of the Karnataka CM disrespectful to the Union home minister and our country?"

'Bommai used to be backed by Amit Shah. Now he is saying meeting Amit Shah is useless on the border issue! who is actually in charge here?! And will the Maharashtra government now sell our villages to their BJP neighbours after selling our projects to Gujarat,' Aam Aadmi Party leader Preeti Sharma Menon tweeted.

In a tweet on Friday, Bommai had said his state's stand was 'legitimate' and its case in the apex court was 'strong'.

"Our government will not make any compromise on the border issue," the Karnataka CM had said.