Supriya Sule slams Karnataka CM in Lok Sabha over border issue with Maharashtra

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP Supriya Sule in Lok Sabha slammed Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai over the border issue between Karnataka and Maharashtra and urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to speak up regarding it.

"For the past 10 days, a new issue has cropped up in Maharashtra. The Chief Minister of our neighbouring state, Karnataka has been speaking nonsense. Yesterday, people of Maharashtra wanted to go to the Karnataka border but they were thrashed," Sule said in the Lok Sabha.

"Conspiracy against Maharashtra is going on for past 10 days. Karnataka Chief Minister is speaking about disintegrating Maharashtra. Both states are BJP-ruled. People of Maharashtra were beaten up yesterday. This can't be allowed. This is one country. I urge Amit Shah to speak up," she added.

Amid the ongoing Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said that he will talk to Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the issue.

Addressing a press conference, Fadnavis said that he had spoken to Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai over the incidents that took place on Tuesday.

"I myself spoke to the Chief Minister of Karnataka. We ensure Sharad Pawar saheb has no need to go to Karnataka. I will talk to Union Home Minister Amit Shah about this Karnataka dispute, and he will look into this matter soon," said Fadnavis.

He further urged the people of Maharashtra as well as Karnataka to maintain peace and not to take law and order into their hands.

"Maharashtra is known for law and order and I request Maharashtra people don't take law and order in their hands and maintain peace in borders. It is also the responsibility of Karnataka to maintain law and order in their areas too. I told them that this type of incident was not right and it will not happen again. Stone pelting and destroying public buses are not right for both ends," said the Deputy Chief Minister.

"Our constitution said that everyone will live in any state any place, but this type of incident will not happen. It is against law and order. The matter is in the supreme court, so it is not right to harm public property," he added.

Fadnavis also slammed Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) on their December 17 morcha in Maharashtra.

He said, "No one can change the place of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. This morcha that is being taken out by the Mahavikas Aghadi is only doing politics in the name of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj."

"Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is ideal for the whole country and he will remain, anyone wrong statement can't down Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's image. They (MVA) are sad with the Governor of Maharashtra from other issues all of us know it. Governor many times told that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is his ideal and he follows him, governor always worked for Swaraj, he goes Pratapgarh, takes Aai Jijaubai birthplace," Fadnavis added.

Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj S Bommai and his Maharashtra counterpart Eknath Shinde also discussed the issue over a call on Tuesday and agreed that both states should maintain peace, law and order.

"Maharashtra Chief Minister Shri Eknath Shinde had a telephonic discussion with me, we both agreed that there should be peace and law and order to be maintained in both the states," tweeted Bommai.

The Karnataka CM stressed the harmonious relationship between the people of both states, saying that the border issue will be resolved legally in the Supreme Court.

"Since there is a harmonious relationship between the people of both the states, however, there is no change in our stand as far as the Karnataka border is concerned. And the legal battle will be pursued in Supreme court," tweeted Bommai.

The border dispute between Maharashtra and Karnataka goes back to the implementation of the State Reorganization Act, of 1956. The then Maharashtra government had demanded the readjustment of its border with Karnataka.

Following this, a four-member committee was formed by both states.

The Maharashtra government had expressed willingness to transfer predominantly 260 predominantly Kannada-speaking villages, but Karnataka turned down the proposal.Now, both Karnataka and Maharashtra governments have approached the Supreme Court to expedite the matter, and the matter is still pending.

(ANI)

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