Shiv Sena targets Shahrukh Khan

MUMBAI: After MNS chief Raj Thackeray's rant against the Bachchans over Jaya Bachchan's Hindi remarks, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray deflected the controversy by training his guns on Shah Rukh Khan.

While cautioning Jaya Bachchan not to provoke the sentiments of Marathi-speaking people, he blasted Shah Rukh Khan for calling himself a 'Delhiwala'.

Sources in the Shiv Sena said Thackeray deliberately took on Khan to shield his favourite family and divert the criticism to Khan, known as an arch rival of the Bachchans.

In an edit in party mouthpiece Saamna, Thackeray stated: "Shah Rukh says he is a Delhiwala. If you are from Delhi, then why have you come to Maharashtra? You come here to earn fame and wealth but once you have had your fill, you will evoke the name of the region from where you came and Marathi people are expected not to utter a word in their own state."

A source said, "Balasaheb has very good relations with the Bachchans. He strongly supported Amitabh Bachchan when Raj opened fire against the actor in February. Balasaheb is not against Shah Rukh, but he knows the media well. He is aware that once he criticises Shah Rukh, the media will forget the war of words between Raj and Bachchan and will focus on the so called Balasaheb-Shah Rukh spat."

Thackeray warned Jaya not to provoke the sentiments of Marathi-speaking people, but he softened the blow by praising her husband.

"Amitabh Bachchan does not belong to a region or language. A great actor like him is born once in a century. However, when his wife proclaims that they are from Uttar Pradesh, what meaning should one draw from it?" Thackeray said.

Drawing attention to Maharashtra's contribution to the development of the country, Thackeray said, "Maharashtra has produced many revolutionaries who sacrificed their lives for the country. If you have a sense of regionalism, then what is wrong if we indulged in it a bit too?"

Meanwhile, though Jaya Bachchan has expressed regret for her statements in an interview to a daily, the Raj-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) has demanded that she tender a public apology.

"Jaya made her remarks at a public function. She should seek an apology publicly too. We will continue our agitation till then," MNS general secretary Shishir Shinde said.

MNS workers blackened posters of Amitabh and Abhishek in Juhu, Irla, Bandra and Kalyan. Effigies of the actors were also burnt in Amravati, Sangli and Latur.