On Maharashtra Day, deputy CM brings up Karnataka border row, says 'will fight till last Marathi village joins state'

Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar on Sunday brought up the issue of border row with Karnataka as the state marks the day of formation. “On this Maharashtra Day, we still regret that several Marathi-speaking villages at the state border including Belgaum, Nipai and Karwar couldn't be part of the state yet. I assure you we'll keep supporting the fight by the people of these villages to become a part of Maharashtra,” the 62-year-old leader was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

The state claims certain areas, including Belgaum, Karwar and Nippan that are a part of Karnataka, saying that a majority of the population here speaks Marathi. Karnataka, however, has made counterclaims saying the areas are an integral part of the state. The dispute is said to have its origin in the States Reorganisation Act of 1956.The leaders of the two states have often sparred over the matter. In December, strict curbs were put in place in Belgavi, also called Belgaum, after violence - linked to the controversy - was reported. The Shiv Sena, one of the three ruling coalition partners in Maharashtra, has demanded in the past that the border district should be declared a union territory by the centre, alleging that the Marathi-speaking population has faced atrocities. "If the atrocities are not going to stop, then the Centre should declare Belgaum as a Union Territory," an article in the party’s mouthpiece, Saamana, said last year. Maharashtra Day, commonly known as Maharashtra Diwas, is celebrated to mark the bifurcation of "Bombay" state on a linguistic basis into two states: Gujarat and Maharashtra. Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday paid tributes here to 105 martyrs of the Samyukta (unified) Maharashtra movement on the occasion of the state's foundation day.