MUMBAI, PATNA, NEW DELHI, MARCH 5: Giving politics over the anti-migrant campaign in Maharashtra a fresh lease of life, Shiv Sena and its chief Bal Thackeray today heaped abuse on Biharis, saying they were a burden in many parts of the country, sparking outrage both within and outside the state.

The Sena mouthpiece Saamna, which is edited by Thackeray, said Bihari MPs were �spitting in the same plate from which they ate� by criticising Mumbaikars and Maharashtrians. �They are trying to add fuel to the fire that has been extinguished, by saying that Mumbaikars have rotten brains,� the editorial said.

The outburst was apparently in response to MPs from Bihar disrupting Lok Sabha yesterday in protest against the attacks on north Indians last month by activists of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, the party formed by Thackeray�s estranged nephew Raj.

The Sena, however, chose to praise Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, describing him as an honest and hardworking person �who is not allowed to work by the pigs of hell�.

But in Patna, an upset Nitish Kumar demanded that the Prime Minister and the Centre intervene without any delay.

�No more requests now. The Centre should act now. It is the Centre�s responsibility to protect the country�s interest. If the Centre and the Prime Minister do not intervene then it will be understood that the consent of the Congress was also there in vitiating the atmosphere in Maharashtra,� Nitish Kumar said.

The Saamna editorial prompted at least 16 Lok Sabha MPs from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, belonging to the RJD, JD(U), Samajwadi Party and the Congress, to give notice for breach of privilege proceedings against Bal Thackeray.

After the matter was raised in the House, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee said: �If anybody has made any comment on our members� functioning in the conduct of business in the House, not only do we treat that with the contempt that it deserves, but also any action that may be necessary will be taken according to procedure and well established norms.� He assured members that �certainly, nobody will be spared.�

The Saamna said lack of governance and development in Bihar had resulted in an exodus to Maharashtra and Mumbai. Biharis were creating �problems� not only in Maharashtra but also elsewhere in the country including Punjab and Haryana where people were fed up with the migrants, it said.

The editorial singled out Bihar MP Prabhunath Singh for his comments against Maharashtra. It alleged that Singh had several cases of murder and dacoity against him and deserved to be in jail but was sitting in Parliament.

Although it drew widespread condemnation, the editorial was not the first time in recent weeks that Thackeray chose to raise the pitch against north Indian migrants after Raj and his party hijacked a plank which was originally his.

Political observers in Mumbai say the Sena has been caught in a bind by Raj�s campaign as it had in recent years sought to portray an inclusive image to try and woo the significant migrant vote in the Mumbai and Thane region in the run-up to the Assembly elections due in 2009.

In the last one month, it has tried to balance this strategy by once again speaking up for Maharashtrians and reminding them that it was actually the Shiv Sena which was the original voice of the local people.