MUMBAI: Issuing a stern warning, Shiv Sena Chief Bal Thackeray on Wednesday asked the all the institutions in the city with the name Bombay as prefix to change it to Mumbai, failing which the party would target them.
"If the supporters of Bombay keep harping their tune, then the 'Bombaywallahs' will be forced to flee," Thackeray said in an editorial in the party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.
"Samajhne wale ko ishara kaafi hai (intelligent people should take a cue from our indications). Be it a school, an English newspaper or any industry, we are giving an indication as to what we think they should do," he said.
"Those clamouring to retain the name of Bombay instead of changing it to Mumbai will be forced to flee," Thackeray warned.
The Sena had targeted a leading newspaper, an elite school and a textile showroom for using Bombay in their name. It also protested on Tuesday in front of the Bombay Stock Exchange, demanding a change in its name.
Twenty-four workers from the party and its campus wing Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Sena were also arrested outside BSE under provisions of Bombay Police Act for violating prohibitory orders on Tuesday.
Shiv Sena had launched a campaign to rename the city from Bombay to Mumbai on Sunday last, thereby vandalising the boards of Bombay Scottish School in Mahim.
In another incident, the Sainiks knocked down the Bombay Dyeing boards outside the company's showroom in Worli and also targeted a Times group newspaper, Bombay Times.
The move to attack these institutions comes after 'Saamana' editor Sanjay Raut wrote a stinging article, rebuking institutions for continuing to use 'Bombay' in their names.
Thackeray, in today's editorial said: "What is the harm if the name of Bombay High court is changed to Mumbai High court, Bombay Dyeing to Mumbai Dyeing or Bombay Stock Exchange to 'Mumbai Stock Exchange?"
He said, "If Calcutta can be changed to Kolkata, Bangalore to Bangaluru, Trivandrum to Tiruvanantapuram, then what is the problem if the name of Bombay becomes Mumbai?"
Besides, he said the central government had long back changed Bombay's name to Mumbai. But unfortunately, some people are still opposed to using Mumbai even though the change of name has been done constitutionally.
