2 MNS leaders detained ahead of Thackeray's Aurangabad visit

Police on Friday detained twosenior local leaders of the MNS as a precautionary measureahead of the visit of Maharashtra Chief Minister UddhavThackeray to Aurangabad, an official said.Maharashtra Navnirman Sena MNS Aurangabad districtchief Suhas Dashrathe and the partys city president SatnamSingh Gulati were detained in the morning, a day after theythreatened to stop Thackerays convoy during his visit tohighlight their demand to rename Aurangabad as Sambhajinagar,the police official said.Thackeray is scheduled to review ongoing developmentworks in Aurangabad during his visit on Friday.

Police on Friday detained twosenior local leaders of the MNS as a precautionary measureahead of the visit of Maharashtra Chief Minister UddhavThackeray to Aurangabad, an official said.

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) Aurangabad districtchief Suhas Dashrathe and the party's city president SatnamSingh Gulati were detained in the morning, a day after theythreatened to stop Thackeray's convoy during his visit tohighlight their demand to rename Aurangabad as Sambhajinagar,the police official said.

Thackeray is scheduled to review ongoing developmentworks in Aurangabad during his visit on Friday. He will alsoattend the ground-breaking ceremony of a sports complex in thedistrict and preside over a meeting at the collectorate,another official said.

On Thursday, Dashrathe and Gulati stopped Shiv Senaleader and former MP Chandrakant Khaire's car and threwleaflets printed with the demand of renaming Aurangabad. Theincident took place in the city's Kranti Chowk area.

After the agitation, Dashrathe and Gulati, throughsocial media posts, warned they would also stop the convoy ofThackeray during his visit to the city.

''So the police have detained them and will releasethem after a few hours,'' the police official told PTI.

The Shiv Sena, which shares power with the Congressand NCP in Maharashtra, itself recently raised afresh thedemand that Aurangabad, named after Mughal emperor Aurangzeb,be rechristened as Sambhajinagar.