The opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) announced a massive protest march in Mumbai on December 17 against the Eknath Shinde government for insulting Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and on the Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute while also demanding to remove Maharashtra's Governor Bhagat
"We have already communicated to them that it will create law and order problem, therefore, it's not the right time to come. I appeal to Maharashtra CM that the matter is in court and fight it legally," said Karnataka CM.
In another major turn to the border row, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavraj Bommai on Sunday said that the state is all set for a legal battle with Maharashtra over the border dispute.
According to sources, the Karnataka Home Secretary Rajneesh Goyal called his Maharashtra counterpart to ensure the protection of all Kannadigas in Maharashtra.
Sanjay Raut, the leader of Uddhav Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena on Friday attacked Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari and said that they are ready to fight the ' Mahabharat of new era', adding that the issue of Karnataka-Maharashtra border dispute has been intentionally raked up to divert p
Eknath Shinde said, "We are doing the work of giving justice to the Marathi people in the border areas. Not even an inch of space in Maharashtra will be allowed to go anywhere."
"The Karnataka Chief Minister is giving his statement on border issues. It seems like Karnataka CM Bommai has been possessed for suddenly staking a claim on 40 villages in Maharashtra?" Uddhav Thackeray said.
This comes after Bommai indulged in a war of words with Fadnavis over the border issue of the two states and called the remarks of the Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister "provocative".
"The Karnataka-Maharashtra border dispute has started again because of the weakness and inability of the current government in Maharashtra. This government has no idea about the state," Raut said.
Since its inception in 1960, Maharashtra has been entangled in a dispute with Karnataka over the status of Belgaum district and 80 other Marathi speaking villages.