Shiv Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut on Friday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of conspiring to make Mumbai a union territory, claiming that a presentation regarding this has been made to the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Talking to reporters in Mumbai, Raut alleged that former BJP MP Kirit Somaiya and a group of party leaders, builders, businessmen were part of this conspiracy.
He said, "A presentation about making Mumbai a union territory has been made to the MHA [by this group]. Meetings have been held and funds are being collected for this purpose. This has been going on for the last two months and I am saying this with full responsibility. I have proof to substantiate what I am saying. Chief minister [Uddhav Thackeray] is also aware of this development."
Raut further claimed that in the next few months, the group led by Somaiya is likely to move court saying the percentage of Marathi people in Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra, has gone down drastically and hence the city should be made a union territory under the central government rule.
Raut added Somaiya had earlier challenged the state government's decision to make Marathi a compulsory language in schools.
With PTI inputs
