Raj criticises cousin, asks his family to stop inferring in functioning of BMC
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, who is desperate to survive in the political space, is trying to adopt the hardline Hindutva agenda
Mumbai Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, who is desperate to survive in the political space, is trying to adopt the hardline Hindutva agenda.
During his annual Gudi Padwa rally at Shivaji Park on Saturday, unsparing in his criticism of his cousin and Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, Raj said that the CM needs to stop his family members from interfering in the functioning of BMC.
In his speech, he demanded the removal of loudspeakers from mosques and suggested that Madrasass be raided. “The loudspeakers on top of the mosques should be removed. This government needs to take the decision. If this is not done, then people should install speakers in front of these mosques and broadcast the Hanuman Chalisa at twice the volume,” said Raj. “I am not against anyone praying but you have no right to trouble us with these loudspeakers which start from 5:00 am onwards. Pray in your homes,” he added.
In addition, he called upon prime minister Narendra Modi to raid these madrasas. “Raid these Madrasas in the slums and see what you get. We don’t need Pakistan to attack us as these internal forces are a bigger threat. No one knows what is happening in these masjids,” he added. He said that people coming from Pakistan and Bangladesh are being patronised by India’s politicians. He further praised the BJP for returning to power in Uttar Pradesh.
Raj, whose political career is currently shaky, chose to abandon his ‘Son of the soil’ theme and embrace the Hindutva line. In 2020, after the drubbing in the assembly polls, he adopted a new saffron flag.
Raj taunted Uddhav, who asked the investigating agencies to arrest him instead of harassing his family members. “Tell your family members not to go to the BMC. The family looks after all the transactions in the BMC. I was served an ED notice but I faced it. They were served four months back. However, when ED started attaching properties, the chief minister woke up,” said Raj.
He recalled that Uddhav had betrayed the mandate of the people by aligning with his opponents. “Uddhav attained enlightenment once the results were out. During the campaign, Modi has been saying that Fadnavis will be the chief minister. Even Amit Shah seconded him but Uddhav didn’t say a word. He has betrayed the mandate of the people by aligning with the very people he opposed,” he added.
Raj also assailed the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and said that it was responsible for spreading hatred among various castes in Maharashtra. “This caste politics began with the birth of the NCP in 1999. They spread hate among various castes. Both NCP and their chief Sharad Pawar are responsible for this,” he added.