Saamna toon mocking protests draws flak

MUMBAI: Even as the Shiv Sena has so far refrained from directly commenting on the ongoing protests by the Maratha community, the party drew flak from across politicians and Maratha activists over a cartoon published in its mouthpiece, Saamna, poking fun at the silent rallies of the community.

To repair the damage, Saamna on Tuesday carried a front page news article about a press conference addressed by a few office bearers of the Maratha Kranti Morcha in Thane condemning the wrath on social media and protests against Shiv Sena over the cartoon, saying they deliberately incited violence. Next to the article, Saamna also published a column saying, “There is no question of hurting the feelings of the Maratha community. Shiv Sena welcomes the tolerant stand taken by the Maratha Kranti Morcha office bearers.”

The Maratha protests are not political, but sentimental, there is no question of hurting the sentiments that Shiv Sena supports, the publication said, attributing the same to its editor Sanjay Raut.