PUNE: A Muslim MNS functionary from Pune said he had quit the party after its chief Raj Thackeray spoke of countering the azaan from loudspeakers atop mosques with Hanuman Chalisa.
Thackeray had made the statement during his Gudi Padwa rally in Mumbai on Saturday and had asked the state government to shut down loudspeakers used by mosques to call out for prayers.
Shakha president Majid Shaikh told a Marathi news channel on Monday he had resigned because communalism had crept into the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena.
Raj Thackeray used to speak about the state's development but was now taking the support of caste and religion for his politics, Shaikh added.
Meanwhile, state minister Nitin Raut, who was here for an event, hit out at Thackeray, and said the MNS leader was "changing his colour" like a chameleon with such a statement.