A defiant and brazen Shiv Sena on Monday refused to withdraw its protest against Pakistan while expecting Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to take strict action against former Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri. Some Sena activists had smeared black paint of the face of former BJP leader Sudheendra Kulkarni, who is at present the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) chief, his refusal to cancel the Kasuri's book launch function.
While addressing a press conference Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said, "We haven't stopped protesting against Pakistan. A message is going around that we have withdrawn our protest, this is a blatant lie. We hold our stand. We expect the CM to take strict action against Kasuri."
Justifying the agitation, Raut said, "When Kasuri was foreign minister, he was very rude towards India and Vajpayeeji (former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee) had to go into a war with Pakistan." The party has also sent a letter to Fadnavis to intervene in the matter and ban the event.
Shiv Sainiks had intercepted Kulkarni's car on Monday morning just outside his Matunga home and painted his face black.
A defiant Kulkarni, however, said he would not be "cowed down" by such actions and go ahead with the evening launch of Kasuri's book 'Neither a Hawk nor a Dove: An Insider's Account of Pakistan's Foreign Policy'.
"When I got out of my home this morning, a group of Shiv Sainiks stopped my car. When I came out, they smeared me with black paint. They abused me," Kulkarni alleged.
"We won't be cowed down by such events and the book launch will happen as planned," he said and soon after was present at a media interaction along with Kasuri while still drenched in paint.
The incident took even as Fadnavis assured the organisers of full security cover.
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