MUMBAI/DELHI, Oct 12 - Aggressively pursuing its campaign against Pakistani personalities, Shiv Sena activists today blackened the face of ORF chief Sudheendra Kulkarni over his refusal to cancel the book launch function of former Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri, prompting strong condemnation from political parties.
However, undeterred by the violent protest, which Shiv Sena called �very mild�, the organisers, including the Observer Research Foundation, went ahead with the programme which was held amid tight security following threats of disruption by the pro-Hindutva party.
A group of Shiv Sainiks intercepted the car of Kulkarni, chairman of ORF, a foreign policy think tank, just outside his Matunga home this morning and painted his face black.
A defiant Kulkarni, however, said he will not be �cowed down� by such actions and go ahead with the evening launch of Kasuri�s book Neither a Hawk nor a Dove: An Insider�s Account of Pakistan�s Foreign Policy.
�This shows your resolve, our resolve and common resolve, the resolve of millions of Mumbaikars to defend the values of tolerance and diversity,� Kulkarni said in his opening remarks at the event held in the evening at Nehru Centre in Mumbai.
�I am immensely proud of Marathi, Mumbai. Mumbai is Maharashtrian, but before that, it is a national and international city. It is tolerant, inclusive, liberal, democratic and multi-faith city,� he said.
Kasuri, on his part, thanked Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for providing �excellent protection� during his stay in the city. � PTI
