Yashwant reacts to Thackeray's words on Bihari MPs

Indore, Mar 6 (UNI) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Yashwant Sinha today said that it was for the Maharashtra government to take a decision on legal action against Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray for expressing his opinion regarding parliamentarians from Bihar.

''The Congress is in power both at the Centre and in Maharashtra.

Why is no step being taken despite repeated demands for legal action? The BJP has made it clear right from the start that regionalism is a narrow-minded sentiment that can break up the country. Such talk, irrespective of its source, is not in keeping with the spirit of the Constitution,'' he said here.

Mr Sinha pointed out that people could move from one state to another under the Constitution's Right to Freedom of Movement.

Earlier, he told party workers to begin preparing for a general election as the Centre could impose one on the country anytime after August.

Reacting to the 2008-09 Budget's Rs 60,000-crore debt waiver for farmers, the former union finance minister said, ''why did the United Progressive Alliance regime not take this step earlier? Why wait for a poll year? The UPA government was born handicapped and was paralysed after the 123 Indo-US Nuclear Agreement against which our protest will continue as the deal envisages US control over our nuclear arsenal.'' UNI AA-AC 1849