A petition has been filed in the Bombay High Court seeking registration of an FIR against Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray over his alleged hate speech targeting Hindi-speaking citizens.
Filed by Sunil Shukla, President of the Uttar Bhartiya Vikas Sena, the plea accused Thackeray and MNS members of inciting violence and making repeated threats against the North Indian-Hindi speaking community in Maharashtra, as well as against Shukla personally.
The petitioner further alleged that over the past year, he faced harassment, grave threats and physical intimidation solely due to his political identity and advocacy for North Indian migrants in the state. While the threats escalated significantly in the past 10 months, both the state police and Maharashtra government failed to take any action, despite nine written complaints, he noted.
Shukla mentioned an incident of October 2024, wherein a group of around 30 individuals, allegedly affiliated with MNS, barged into the office premises of his political party and attempted to ransack the premises. The petitioner claimed that a police officer witnessed the hour-long incident, however, he neither record any statement, nor made any arrests.
The petitioner claimed that he made repeated efforts to raise the issue with senior police officials and political authorities, but all in vain.
The plea further cited a speech made by Thackeray on March 30, 2025, during a Gudi Padwa rally, which allegedly called for violence against Hindi-speaking employees in malls and banks for not speaking Marathi. The speech, which was broadcast widely, directly led to multiple attacks on Hindi-speaking staff across Mumbai, it claimed.
The petitioner further alleged that after filing a petition before the Supreme Court earlier last month against Thackeray, he received multiple death threats via phone and WhatsApp. As per Shukla, his phone number was circulated by MNS supporters, resulting in a flood of threatening messages. Even after he informed the police and top state officials, no protective action was taken, he added.
The petitioner sought immediate police protection for himself and his family, along with the registration of FIRs against Thackeray and others for threatening him.
Filed through Advocate Sriram Parakkat, the plea requested the High Court to direct the Election Commission of India (ECI) to consider the deregistration of MNS for allegedly violating election laws and promoting hatred & enmity. It also sought an investigation into the threats and attacks by an independent agency or a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to ensure impartiality and insulate the process from political interference.