A day after an editorial in Shiv Sena-run Marathi daily newspaper ‘Saamna’ criticised the Gujarati community in Mumbai, Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Friday appealed to keep the “relationship” between Marathi and Gujarati people “intact”.

“People in the state unitedly exercised their right to franchise for a strong government at Centre. Marathi and Gujarati speakers, especially those who consider themselves staunch votaries of the Hindutva ideology have done wonders,” Uddhav has been quoted as saying in a press statement issued here.

“Many people get stomach aches after seeing them act in a united manner. The late Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray used to say that if Marathi and Gujarati speakers in Mumbai came together, they could create a miracle in the country,” he said in the statement.

He said that these miracles would be seen after the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

“The unity of Marathi and Gujarati speakers will not break. Fearing what would happen to them, some people are sowing seeds of hatred in this sweet relationship. We will be cautious about them and keep this unity intact,” the Sena leader said.

He also urged both the communities to strive towards hoisting the saffron flag during the Lok Sabha as well as state assembly elections.

However, only yesterday, in a ‘Saamna’ editorial, the Sena chief had asked whether Gujaratis were ready to rally behind them during the assembly elections, the way they united in support of BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.

The editorial had alleged that the Gujarati community and other non-Marathi traders had extracted a lot from Mumbai, and utlised the city like a “sex worker” in order to build their own cities of gold (Dwarakas).

“Will the Gujarati community stand behind us to realise the dream of hoisting the saffron flag atop Maharashtra’s Mantralaya? On this Maharashtra Day (the state’s foundation day on May 1), the 11 crore citizens of Maharashtra have to take an oath to ensure that the dream of the 105 martyrs (who were killed in police firing during the Samyukta Maharashtra movement) does not go unrealised,” the ‘Saamna’

editorial had said.

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