As many as 803 mosques in Mumbai have been given permission to install loudspeakers, said city police commissioner Sanjay Pandey. A total of 1,144 applications were submitted by mosques, of which police gave permission to 803, city police chief Sanjay Pandey said on Tuesday, adding the applications of remaining mosques are being verified and under process.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, whose warning to chant Hanuman Chalisa outside mosques if those are not removed by May 3, stoked controversy in the state last month, reiterated his appeal to play the hymn from Wednesday (May 4) onwards. Taking to Twitter, he asked his Hindu brothers and sisters to play the Hanuman Chalisa on loudspeakers if they heard the azan. “That’s when they will realise the hindrance of these loudspeakers!” he wrote on Twitter.
During a recent rally in Aurangabad, the MNS chief had called for chanting of the Hanuman Chalisa if loudspeakers were not removed from atop mosques by May 4. Following this, the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra said on Monday it was evaluating Thackeray’s speech to see if police action could be taken against him and the organisers of the rally.
On Tuesday, Aurangabad’s Chowk police lodged a case against Thackeray and the organisers of the rally. According to a report by news agency PTI, the MNS chief was booked under several sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including for giving provocation with intent to cause riot, and provisions of the Maharashtra Police Act.
Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, the estranged cousin of the MNS chief, held a meeting with state home minister Dilip Walse Patil over law and order earlier in the day. Later, director general of police (DGP) Rajnish Seth said police were well prepared to handle any kind of law and order-related matters, stating that action would be taken against those who try to disrupt the communal harmony of Maharashtra.
Meanwhile, security has been beefed up outside Raj Thackeray’s Mumbai residence ‘Shivtirth’ in view of the loudspeaker row. Some leaders of his party have warned about hitting the streets if further action is taken against the MNS supremo.