Raj Thackeray dares Maharashtra govt to arrest him

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena Chief Raj Thackeray on Monday dared Maharashtra government to arrest him and warned the state that they will have to "regret" the consequences in the event of that.

"Arrest me and be ready to bear the consequences.... you will have to regret," Thackeray, who was attending a ceremony at Bahadursheikh Naka here, said.

"If Raj is arrested, entire Maharashtra will be set on fire," he said.

Justifying the attack by MNS activists on north Indians at the railway board examination centres in suburban Mumbai on Sunday, Thackeray said MNS took the step against candidates appearing for railway recruitment exams as it was a planned operation of north Indians.

Advertisements of these exams are given in February and are being conducted now as per the plan designed for north Indians. These advertisements are never published in Marathi newspapers, he said.

Thackeray, who is on a tour of the Konkan region Mahad, Khed, Chiplun and Ratnagiri, asked people not to sell land to non-Maharashtrians. These people have created a votebank by purchasing land in Konkan area, he said.