Threaten Bhojpuri Star

Raj Thackeray's Goons Threaten Bhojpuri Star

Alleged goons on the payroll of separatist Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Raj Thackeray, on Monday, issued threats to Bhojpuri film star Manoj Tiwari in Mumbai ordering him to stay from a rally organized at Shivaji Park in Dadar 'or face dire consequences', reports from Mumbai said.A spokesperson for Tiwari, Shashikant Singh said this was the second threat issued to the Bhojpuri star in less than 24 hours, each time the caller asking him to not attend the rally though that did not deter Tiwari from attending the rally that was anything but political.Tiwari who, besides being an actor, is also a decent singer, performed on the stage amidst moderate security."I am an entertainer, not a politician and as such, I should not be associated with any particular political party," Tiwari is said to have told the maker of the threatening call.Also on Monday, Raj Thackeray's henchmen in Mumbai on Monday clashed with Samajwadi Party workers and beat up taxi drivers from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.Meanwhile in Patna, a number of protests were organized to condemn Raj Thackeray and what he stands for.Effigies of the idiot-in-chief, as many leaders in Bihar described the MNS leader, were burnt and protests were organized by nearly all political parties including the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress, Janata Dal – U, Samajwadi Party, and even Shiv Sena, the parent organization of Thackeray, that demanded arrest of Raj Thackeray and a public condemnation of his actions and words by the Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh.As reported earlier, Thackeray, the nephew of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, had said that Chhath, Bihar's most revered festival, was more of a drama and had no religious relevance.In a related development, a Patna court on Monday heard a petition filed against Thackeray by a Patna resident Vidya Kumari who is seeking arrest of the MNS chief for spreading communal hatred and insulting the religious sentiments of the people of Bihar, Jharkhand, and Uttar Pradesh.After hearing the arguments by the prosecution presented by senior lawyers Arvind Kumar and K. D. Mishra, the court adjourned until February 13.