New Delhi, October 31
Attacks on North Indians in Mumbai was taken up by the union cabinet at its meeting here yesterday with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expressing his unhappiness and conveying the “sense of the cabinet” on the need to control this.

“The Prime Minister had written a strongly-worded letter to the Maharashtra Chief Minister,” finance minister P. Chidambaram said here while briefing newsmen on the cabinet meeting chaired by the Prime Minister.

“The cabinet expressed its serious concern (over the violence in Mumbai) and sympathised with the families of those who have lost their lives,” Chidambaram said.

“The home minister was asked to take the necessary steps (to restore normalcy),” the finance minister added.

Asked whether the government was contemplating a ban on the Maharashtra Navanirman Sena, Chidambaram replied: “The decision, if and when taken, will be conveyed by the home ministry.”

Reports suggested that there was a unanimous demand at the cabinet meeting for slapping of the NSA on Raj Thackeray and a judicial probe into the police killing of Patna youth Rahul Raj who had tried to hijack a bus in Mumbai swearing vengeance at the MNS chief.

Ram Vilas Paswan raised the demand that a “monster” (read MNS chief) should not be allowed to roam freely, underlining that he and RJD chief Lalu Prasad were under pressure from different quarters for failing to do their job as representatives of Bihar.

Law minister H.D. Bharadwaj agreed that a judicial inquiry was called for. The political alibi that a strong action on Raj Thackeray would make him a hero also came in for rebuke, with Paswan pointing to the arrest of Vaiko in Tamil Nadu. He said that action had to be taken.

Though it was expected, the tenor of the attack on Maharashtra government and Centre’s helplessness took Prime Minister Manmohan Singh by surprise.

Reports suggested that at one point, Singh remarked “what can I do” while recalling that he taken up the matter with CM Vilasrao Deshmukh after Bihar members called him on with their plaint. He asked Shivraj Patil to convey to the state the strong concerns of the cabinet.