A day after Raj Thackeray appealed to migrants coming to Mumbai in search of livelihood to respect the local culture, the Congress Monday asked the MNS chief to avoid targeting them for furthering his "political agenda".
Addressing a rally of north Indians Sunday, Thackeray, known for his strident son-of-the-soil agenda, had said that migrants from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar should question the leaders in their home states for lack of development.
Hitting out at Thackeray, Mumbai Congress chief Sanjay Nirupam said the statement of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief that north Indians residing in Mumbai have no respect (for local culture and language), is "extremely shameful".
"While he (Thackeray) wants them to ask their leaders about the lack of employment in the northern states, no one gives Thackeray the right to commit any kind of violence against them," Nirupam said, adding that Thackeray should refrain from furthering his political agenda.
In his speech, Thackeray had noted that chunk of migrants come to Mumbai from UP, Bihar, Jharkhand and Bangladesh.
"All I want is if people are coming to Maharashtra in search of livelihood, they should respect the local language and culture," he had said.