At least four people, including a child were killed in violence in northern and eastern India in rioting sparked by Tuesday's arrest of Raj Thackeray, head of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) on charges of rioting and provoking attacks on migrant workers. Thackeray, the nephew of Hindu fundamentalist leader Bal Thackeray, was arrested early Tuesday, held overnight in jail, and released on conditional bail in connection with weekend attacks on northern Indians who had come to India's financial capital to seek work on the railways. Maharashtra state police chief A.N. Roy said three died in clashes between supporters of Raj Thackeray and what he called “outsiders” near the town of Kalyan, northeast of Mumbai. In in the northeastern state of Bihar, a child was hit by a stray bullet and died at the scene after police in Rohtas district fired on a mob attacking a train station. Police said at least six people and several policemen were injured when gangs of young men protesting against the MNS-inspired violence torched coaches of a train, vandalized train stations and disrupted rail and road traffic. “The situation is very tense ... we are facing a lot of trouble running the trains on time,” a senior railway official in capital city Patna said. In neighbouring Jharkhand, a mob damaged the home of the head of a Tata Motors factory, also based in Mumbai, while in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Mayawati demanded MNS be banned, echoing calls by other legislators in parliament. Mayawati, chief of Bahujan Samaj Party, warned of a backlash against Maharashtrians in Uttar Pradesh and other states. “There are many people from Maharashtra in other states who could be at the receiving end for none of their fault,” she said. The migration of thousands of workers from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar into India's booming financial capital Mumbai has sparked a violent backlash, with local resentment fuelled by Thackeray. On Wednesday in Mumbai, schools and shops were open and people returned to work. But in Kalyan town, where Thackeray was held, police beat back protesters with batons as Thackeray was brought to court and freed on bail. Thackeray's party strongly supports jobs for local people and promotes the use of the Marathi language and culture, which frequently puts it at odds with wider efforts to encourage a stronger national identity and a mobile workforce.
