Raj Thackeray slams BJP for inducting leaders accused of corruption into cabinet

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena MNS chief Raj Thackeray on Thursday attacked the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party stating the party once said the leaders involved in a multicrore scam would be put behind bars but they were instead inducted into the state cabinet ldquoPrime Minister Narendra Modi had said that those involved in a Rs 70000 crore scam would be put behind bars But where did they put them In the cabinetrdquo Thackeray saidHe was referring to PM Modirsquos speech made in 2023 in Madhya Pradesh where he raised the issue of the alleged irrigation scam in Maharashtra The BJP had targeted Ajit Pawar who was then the leader of opposition for his alleged involvement in the scam However Pawar later joined the Eknath Shindeled government in the state and was made deputy chief minister in July 2023Thackeray said the BJP once accused many leaders of indulging in corruption but later joined hands with them and made them chief ministers and ministers He referred to the induction of West Bengal leader Mukul Roy into the BJP before his return to TMC B S Yediyurapparsquos rejoining of BJP in Karnataka and the partyrsquos alliances with leaders like Omar Abdullah Farooq Abdullah Mehbooba Mufti and late Mufti Mohammad SayeedIn Maharashtra Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil Harshvardhan Patil and Narayan Rane who were once with Congress later joined the BJP Thackeray said ldquoBJP leader Kirit Somaiya had made allegations against several leaders but now these same people are in the cabinetrdquo On the criticism over his frequent meetings with BJP leaders Thackeray said ldquoMany say I should not meet BJP leadershellip I meet people but I do not sell myself My Marathi identity remains intactrdquoTalking about the outcome of the Maharashtra Assembly elections where the Mahayuti alliance secured a thumping victory while the MNS and opposition parties suffered setbacks he said he remained silent for some time as he was analysing the results ldquoOn the day of the results there was an unusual silence across Maharashtra The kind of celebrations that should have happened did not take place Even some people from the RSS I spoke to were surprised One of them jokingly asked me lsquoWhy is there so much silence Someone must have won rightrsquo hellipso what did that silence indicaterdquo he saidHe asked how Ajit Pawarled NCP won 42 seats in the Assembly polls while Sharad Pawarrsquos NCP SP won only 10 ldquoCongress secured the most Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra and NCP SP won 8 seats in the parliamentary polls but managed to win only 10 Assembly seats On the other hand the Ajit Pawarled NCP had won only one Lok Sabha seat but bagged 42 Assembly seats How is that possiblerdquo he wonderedThackeray also cast doubt over certain election results ldquoMNS had fielded sitting MLA Raju Patil from Kalyan Rural constituency in Thane district There are around 1400 voters in Patilrsquos village and he has always received votes from there But this time he did not get even a single vote How is that possiblerdquo he sought to knowRegarding allegations about him frequently changing his political stand Thackeray said ldquoPeople say I change my stand but do they even understand what that means Look at how others have changed sides for their own benefit The current cabinet is mostly comprised of leaders who were earlier with Shiv Sena and Congress They will not be questioned but you will keep hearing that Raj Thackeray changes his stancerdquo He also hinted at making internal changes in the MNS saying a new code of conduct would be introduced to instil discipline mdashright from the top leadership to grassroots workersEncouraging his supporters not to get discouraged Thackeray said ldquoI have seen many victories and defeats But I have never been disheartened by a defeat or got carried away by a victory I do not want to lead people who are demoralised If you want to stand with me then stand strong Whatever we have to do for Maharashtra and Marathi people we will do it If not today then tomorrow but it will definitely happen That is certainrdquoOn the controversy surrounding a scene in an upcoming film lsquoChhavarsquo in which Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj is seen playing lsquolezimrsquo Thackeray said the filmrsquos director Laxman Utekar recently met him to discuss the issue ldquoLezim is Maharashtrarsquos traditional dance Sambhaji Maharaj may have picked up lezim at some point who knows Even if it is not in the history books it could be in our imagination But I asked the director whether the song in question was crucial to the filmrsquos narrative or just a celebration song He said it was only to show celebration So I asked him if it was necessary to risk the entire film for one songrdquo he said adding that the film director said the scene would be dropped from the movieThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever