Opposition parties out-shout one another on inflation

After competing with each other on the issue of 'Marathi pride', the Shiv Sena and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) are again engaged in a contest, this time on inflation.

Both parties have staged street agitations to protest against the rising prices of essential commodities. And both have warned that their agitation will be intensified if the prices of essential commodities are not brought down.

A day after the Shiv Sena protested against inflation at Dadar, the women's wing of the MNS took out a morcha from Mahim fort to the suburban collector's office in Bandra on the same issue. MNS chief Raj Thackeray's wife Sharmila led the morcha and submitted a memorandum to collector Vishwas Patil to bring down the prices of essential commodities.

The morcha was significant for another reason: the women's wing of the MNS had recently witnessed a rift in its leadership. "The morcha showed that the women's wing has not been affected at all after Shweta Parulkar left," vice-president Reeta Gupta said. Parulkar was chief of the women's wing.

The Sena, meanwhile, is staging protests against inflation all over the state. "It is just the beginning," said party spokesperson Sanjay Raut. "We will have fiery agitations till prices are brought down."

The Bharatiya Janata Party, an electoral ally of the Shiv Sena, has also announced its decision to agitate against rising prices. "We will hold a jail bharo agitation on August 9 against inflation and other issues all over the state," Maharashtra BJP president Nitin Gadkari said. "More than 5,00,000 workers will participate in the agitation."