Munde, Uddhav Thackeray appeal for peace in Maharashtra

Nagpur, Nov 30 (UNI) Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Gopinath Munde and Shiv Sena working President Uddhav Thackeray today condemned the desecration of the statue of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in Kanpur and appealed for peace in the state.

Addressing a joint press conference here this afternoon, Mr Munde and Mr Thackeray said leaders of the dalit community should help curb the violence that had erupted in the state in the wake of the desecration.

The state government had mishandled the situation and now must take the dalit leaders into confidence to help restore peace, they said.

Mr Munde denied allegations that activists of the BJP were involved in the killing of four members of a dalit family in Khairlanji in Bhandara district of Vidarbha recently. The Congress-led government in Maharashtra would not have remained idle if any BJP activist had been involved in the incident, he said.

In reply to a question, Mr Munde said he would visit Khairlanji on December 2.

The two leaders were on their way to Navargaon in Chandrapur district to address an election rally for Ramesh Gajbe, the BJP-Shiv Sena candidate contesting the by-election of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly from there.

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