Remarks on Prophet: Due to BJP, nation confronted embarrassment at worldwide stage and needed to apologise, says Uddhav

By PTI

AURANGABAD: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday mentioned that due to the BJP, the nation needed to face an embarrassing scenario on the worldwide stage because it was “brought to its knees and was forced to apologise” by the Arab nations over the controversial remarks made by the celebration spokesperson on Prophet Mohammad.

Addressing a rally, his first exterior Mumbai after his backbone surgical procedure in November final 12 months, Thackeray additionally attacked the BJP saying that whereas inflation is on the rise and the rupee is on a downward slide, there’s a concern to search out beneath which mosque there’s a Shivling.

He additionally slammed the Centre over the current focused killings in Kashmir, and mentioned as a substitute of harassing the leaders of Maharashtra’s ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) by means of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED), raids ought to be carried out there.

On the controversial feedback made by former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma in opposition to Prophet Mohammad, he mentioned, “The Middle East and the Arab countries brought our country to its knees and forced to apologise. What led to this? India has to apologise. What has the country done? It is the BJP and its spokespersons that have committed the crime. The words spoken by the BJP spokesperson or BJP cannot be the stand of India on any issue. The words of BJP spokesperson used (for Prophet Mohammad) tarnished India’s image at the International level. It damaged the image of my country and not that of the BJP,” he mentioned.

“There are political differences between us (Shiv Sena and BJP), but he (Narendra Modi) is our country’s prime minister. His photo was stuck on garbage bins (in some country) and we keep seeing it. But why should the country apologise for it when the mistake is done by BJP and it’s spokesperson,” Thackeray added.

The BJP on Sunday suspended Nupur Sharma and expelled its Delhi unit media head Naveen Kumar Jindal after a row over their alleged derogatory remarks in opposition to Prophet Mohammad escalated with protests from some Muslim nations.

Sharma’s feedback, made in a TV debate almost lately, and Jindal’s now-deleted tweets sparked a Twitter development calling for a boycott of Indian merchandise in some Arab nations. “I want to ask RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat whether he had expected this kind of behaviour of BJP seen today,” Thackeray mentioned.

During his speech, he focused the BJP over numerous points starting from Hindutva to inflation and the controversial statements made by BJP spokespersons.

“Inflation is rising, rupee is declining, but our worry is Shivling lying beneath which mosque, what is under the Taj Mahal, what is under the Gyanvapi masjid,” he mentioned at a rally that was attended by the highest leaders of the celebration.

“What have we done to say that we have deserted Hindutva. Let’s debate what Shiv Sena has done for Hindutva and BJP has done for it,” he mentioned.

He mentioned had his father late Sena founder Bal Thackeray not taken the duty and mentioned that if the Shiv Sainiks had demolished Babri he was pleased with it, or had he not backed Kashmiri Pandits and “roared” when Amarnath Yatra was beneath assault, then would BJP have risen to energy within the identify of Hindutva.

Asserting that the Sena was not “hollow Hindutvavdi” to take classes of Hindutva from the BJP, Thackeray recalled that through the Ayodhya motion, there was slogan ‘Whoever who thinks in regards to the welfare of Hindus will rule the nation’ and requested whether or not the BJP which is in energy interested by the welfare of Hindus.

He additionally welcomed the statements made by RSS chief, who mentioned that there was no want to search out Shivling in each mosque. He additionally attacked Independent MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana, who have been arrested in April after they insisted on reciting Hanuman Chalisa exterior Thackeray’s non-public residence ‘Matoshree’.

“If you have the guts then go to Kashmir and recite Hanuman Chalisa. Our Hindutva is not of impotent. If you are a man, then protect the Kashmir Pandits. If you have the guts then go there,” he mentioned.

“It makes one angry that the Kashmiri Pandits are leaving the Valley and no one is ready to speak for them. Did any single spokesperson of BJP speak on this issue,” he requested.

BJP by no means noticed Hindu festivals whereas doing agitations or doing Bharat Bandh as a result of they indulged in politics alone. But late Shiv Sena supremo by no means did this.

Earlier when petrol costs went up even by seven paise, former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee as soon as went to Parliament in a bullock cart. We are in search of that BJP at this time, he mentioned.

Targetting senior BJP chief Devendra Fadnavis for his comment that whereas he was there when the Babri construction was pulled down in Ayodhya, no person from the Shiv Sena was current there.

“Sena earlier was speaking to make a special law and construct Ram mandir. But you didn’t show that courage. Judgement came from the court, so the Ram Mandir (in Ayodhya) is being erected, that too with people’s money,” Thackeray mentioned.