Autonomy to Kashmir will ruin India, says Thackeray

MUMBAI: Voicing strong opposition to the proposal of giving autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray today said the move would ruin the country.

"Autonomy to Kashmir? This is the limit! Autonomy status should not be given to the state else the country would be ruined," Thackeray said in the party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.

He criticised Congress for floating the idea and told them to leave power.

Thackeray was reacting to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's statement that the Centre was willing to consider autonomy for the state within the ambit of the Constitution.

He further said, "the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's announcement of giving autonomous status to Kashmir and making Sheikh Abdullah its Prime Minister was opposed by the entire country and all the MPs, prompting him to rescind the move."

"Due to the strong opposition by MPs, even the remaining hair on Nehru's bald head started falling and he had to abandon the idea of autonomy to Kashmir," Thackeray said.

"Now Farooq and Omar, scions of Abdullah are also in favour of autonomy status. But it will not happen otherwise the whole country would stand against," he said.

Thackeray was referring to National Conference President and Union Minister Farooq Abdullah's statement welcoming the autonomy initiative.

Meanwhile, Sena is today celebrating 50th anniversary of the party's weekly magazine 'Marmik' here at Shanmukhanand hall in central Mumbai.