Thackeray is one never to miss an opportunity to blast Pakistan and the Muslim community, and once again was in the limelight with his vitriolic observation.

In an editorial in the party mouthpiece Saamna published on Wednesday, the day the two cricketing giants India and Pakistan met in a semifinal match, Thackeray said that the Pakistani cricketers could have offered their prayers in their hotel rooms and questioned as to why they were offering it on the playing ground. “By doing so, the Pakistani cricketers have declared Jihad on our land,” the editorial said.

Thackeray also questioned the wisdom of the federal government deploying anti aircraft guns, the army and paramilitary forces along with air surveillance while also imposing a no fly zone in Chandigarh. Is this high security only meant for a cricket match between India and Pakistan? Why such security is not deployed during other matches, then why only for the match with Pakistan? Thackeray questioned.

In another development, veteran social activist and anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare alleged that corrupt ministers were more dangerous than terrorists.

Speaking at a function in Bhiwandi town on Wednesday, Hazare said, “The only motive of the corrupt ministers is to grab power through money and money through power. In view of the large-scale corruption in the country, it is essential that people come together to fight corruption. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is capable of exposing corrupt people, but is helpless due to the pressure and interference from the government.”

Meanwhile, the suspension of nine Shiv Sena and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislators, who had created a ruckus in the Assembly during the state budget speech of Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar on March 23, was finally withdrawn on Tuesday evening.

Ajit had tried hard till the last moment to ensure that the suspension of the opposition legislators remained till end of this year. But with state Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan and state Parliamentary Minister Harshavardan Patil having ended the boycott of the opposition of the Assembly through talks and firm on withdrawing the expulsion of the legislators, Ajit had no alternative but to fall in line with the decision of Chavan and Patil.

Patil defending the government’s decision to withdraw the expulsion of the legislators, said, “In spite of several rounds of talks, with the opposition and their continued boycott and nonparticipation in the assembly proceedings, their stance is not correct. But the government’s stand on withdrawing the expulsion orders was in a positive direction so that a negative picture about the government is not relayed to the people of the state,” Patil added.