UDDHAV: IT IS GADADHARI V/S GHANTADHARI

It was a Saturday of searing criticism from Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. He tore into his party’s former ally the BJP, the RSS and his estranged cousin and MNS chief Raj Thackeray on a range of issues, including the politically hot subject of Hindutva, polarization and the killing of a Kashmiri pandit, the Centre’s attempt to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra, the burgeoning inflation and unemployment, the campaign to discredit Maharashtra by deploying Central probe agencies and the Centre giving the go-by to the principles of federalism.

At a massive rally, in the backdrop of the Azaan-Hanuman Chalisa controversy and the attacks by the BJP and MNS, Thackeray declared that Shiv Sena had not left Hindutva and warned that any attempt to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra would be strongly foiled. Thackeray, without naming the BJP, claimed that the fake Hindutva party was misleading the nation. He warned that his party would fight against the BJP-led Central government’s attempt to destabilize the state by deploying Central probe agencies.

Thackeray said Shiv Sena had kicked out the ‘donkeys’ when it had broken its alliance with the BJP after the 2019 assembly election in the state. “Devendra Fadnavis said that we are gadha [donkey] dhari Hindus. But let me tell you, we kicked the donkeys out when we broke the alliance with you [BJP]. We wasted 25 years in alliance with the BJP,” he reiterated.

“Our Hindutva is ‘gadadhari (mace-carrying)’. Rahul Bhat was killed by terrorists at the tehsil office in J&K, now what will you [BJP] do? Will you read the Hanuman Chalisa there?” he asked.

The Shiv Sena has claimed that its Hindutva is ‘gadadhari (with a mace)’, while the BJP’s is ‘ghantadhari (with bells)’.

“Some fake Hindutvawadis are misleading our nation. Balasaheb Thackeray taught us that we don’t need Hindus who ring bells in temples. We want Hindus who can thrash terrorists. We have saffron blood in our veins. Don’t try to challenge us,” said Thackeray. “Who are you to decide about our Hindutva? Just because we have gone with the Congress we are less Hindutvawadi? Are all parties that joined the BJP’s NDA Hindutva parties? What about Nitish Kumar, who said the loudspeaker issue was nonsense?” he asked.

“The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has never been part of the freedom struggle. The Samyukta Maharashtra movement was created by my grandfather, who was assisted by my father and his brother Shrikant. But you know who dropped out? The Bharatiya Jan Sangh,” the CM said.

He countered the BJP’s criticism for the Shiv Sena going with the Congress, its ideological opposite. “They say we went with the Congress. We went openly. What about your pre-dawn swearing-in? Yes, we went with the NCP. Had they been with you, you would be singing praises of people like Nawab Malik,” he said. The ‘bogus Hindutva BJP’ had formed an alliance with Mehbooba Mufti, he claimed.

Thereafter, Thackeray lashed out at his estranged brother and MNS chief Raj Thackeray for projecting himself in the manner of the late Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray, by wearing a saffron shawl and staking claim over Hindutva. “One day he takes up the Marathi issue and the next day, he takes up Hindutva,” he said. He likened

Raj Thackeray’s present role and his proximity to the BJP with that of the character played by actor Sanjay Dutt in the 2003 film ‘Munna Bhai M.B.B.S’. Thackeray remarked that just as Munnabhai kept seeing Mahatma Gandhi, Raj Thackeray kept seeing the late Shiv Sena supremo, Balasaheb Thackeray. Concluding his jibe, the CM said, just as Munnabhai had accepted there was a ‘chemical locha (imbalance)’ in his brain, Raj Thackeray too would have to accept it.

“Someone told me that there is one case in Maharashtra like ‘Munna Bhai M.B.B.S’. Here is one case in Maharashtra. He (Raj Thackeray) feels like being Balasaheb Thackeray. He wears saffron shawls, sometimes speaks about Marathi, and other times about Hindutva,” said Thackeray.

He also criticised the Centre over its decision to provide security cover to former BJP MP Kirit Somaiya and Independent MP Navneet Rana, terming them ‘leaking pots’, while urging Shiv Sainiks to neglect them. Thackeray alleged a conspiracy to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra, saying that neither the BJP nor Fadnavis would be able to do it. “The BJP-led government is implementing the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project. Are you going to travel, he asked the Shiv Sainiks. It is a part of the Centre’s plan to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra. The Shiv Sena will strongly fight it and foil such a plan,’’ he roared. Further, the CM criticised the Centre for delaying the payment of GST arrears and not handing over Railways land for Dharavi redevelopment and the Kanjurmarg land for the Metro 3 car shed.

The CM also criticised the opposition by the archaeological department to the state government’s plan for the restoration of ancient temples. Besides, the Centre continued to sit on the state government’s proposal to provide classical status to Marathi language. He asked Fadnavis to take up these issues with the Centre to resolve them at the earliest.