Uddhav mum on Fadnavis’ attack; chides BJP over Ram temple
MUMBAI: Stung by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’ calling his outfit a party of “extortionists”, Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said he will not like to react to it.
He, however, chose to taunt the BJP over its yet unfulfilled promise of building a Ram temple at Ayodhya. Addressing a BJP rally here last night, an aggressive Fadnavis had equated the Sena to a “party of extortionists” and described the outfit’s dominance over Mumbai for the past two decades as a “huge loss” to the megapolis.
“I do not want to give any reaction to his (Fadnavis’) speech last night,” Thackeray told reporters here, after Congress corporator and former leader of opposition in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Devendra Amberkar joined the Sena in his presence, ahead of the February 21 BMC polls.
“He (Fadnavis) had earlier said that no one becomes the prime minister simply by giving a speech from Red Fort. Similarly, nobody becomes Lord Krishna just because one thinks (of himself) so,” he said.
Thackeray did not name BJP Mumbai chief Ashish Shelar, who at Saturday’s rally, had drawn the Mahabharata analogy while referring to Sena- BJP ties and termed Fadnavis as Lord Krishna and expected that Krishna will address to fight against the ‘Kauravas’ (Sena).
“I will not speak on what he (Fadnavis) has said. People of Mumbai will respond to it,” Thackeray said.
“His (Fadnavis’) earlier image has been maligned. Now, one fears if the image will become that of a ‘CM of goons’,” he added. Taunting the BJP for “failing” to honour its poll promise of building a Ram temple at Ayodhya, Thackeray said, “They (BJP) must be looking for the bricks they had collected earlier.”
“If they find those bricks, may be they will build the temple. Mandir banayenge, par kab banayenge (You will build the temple, but when),” the Sena chief said.
“Now, the masks have fallen. Their (BJP leaders’) real faces have come before the people,” he said.