Border row: Devendra Fadnavis briefs Amit Shah on boundary dispute

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said he spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and apprised him about developments related to the boundary dispute with Karnataka over the last one week a period marked by war of words between leaders of the two neighbouring states attacks on vehicles and protests by activistsA statement from Fadnaviss office said Shah patiently heard the Deputy Chief Ministers views on Maharashtras stand on the decadesold boundary dispute which has flared up in the last few days leading to tension in border areasFadnavis also apprised Shah about his telephone conversation with Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on TuesdayThe deputy CM spoke to Bommai following attacks on vehicles from Maharashtra entering Karnataka in the adjoining states border district of BelagaviMeanwhile Maharashtra Navnirman Sena MNS president Raj Thackeray said the boundary dispute should be resolved amicably through talksThe bond between people of Maharashtra and Karnataka is very strong and they have family deities on either side of the border Thackeray said in a statementThe border issue is being raked up with an eye on the 2023 Karnataka Assembly polls and Maharashtra is being targeted he saidAlso Read Maha CM will take final call on ministers visit to disputed areas in KtakaSuddenly Maharashtras border areas are being claimed by Karnataka and this is not a simple matter Someone is deliberately raking up the issue from the Karnataka side The Maharashtra government should find out who is deliberately fanning sentiments here The Karnataka chief minister should not make provocative statements said the MNS leaderThe decadesold border dispute between the two states flared up and spilled onto roads on Tuesday with stones being hurled at vehicles entering Karnataka from the Maharashtra side near a toll booth at Hirebaugwadi in Belagavi districtSimilarly at least four buses from Karnataka were defaced in Pune district allegedly by activists of the Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray and the MNSThe border issue dates back to 1957 after the reorganisation of states on linguistic linesMaharashtra laid claim to Belagavi which was part of the erstwhile Bombay Presidency as it has a sizable Marathispeaking population It also laid claim to 814Marathispeaking villages which are currently part of the southern stateKarnataka however considers the demarcation done on linguistic lines as per the States Reorganisation Act and the 1967 Mahajan Commission Report as finalA Maharashtra ministerial delegation that was supposed to visit Belagavi and hold discussions with a proMarathi group active there on Tuesday had postponed their tour while Kannada organisations staged a protest in the border district in a show of strengthThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever