The Shiv Sena on Tuesday said to BJP don’t try to teach us Hindutva as we are the one who supported this first . meanwhile party chief Uddhav Thackeray defers Nov 24 Ayodhya visit citing security reasons.
In an editorial in its mouthpiece Saamana, the Sena said the party supported Hindutva “at a time when nobody touched it… when many of you were not even born”.
“If you thought we had gone against the NDA, why didn’t you have the courage to discuss it in an NDA meeting? Did the BJP seek NDA’s permission before coming together with Mehbooba Mufti or with Nitish Kumar?”
The Uddhav Thackeray-led party also accused the BJP of throwing it out of the NDA on Balasaheb Thackeray’s death anniversary. “When everyone had gone against [Prime Minister Narendra] Modi, Balasaheb was the one who protected him. And on his death anniversary, you throw the Sena out of NDA?”
Meanwhile, expressing confidence that there would only be roars of “Shiv Sena Zindabad” in Maharashtra, the Sena warned the BJP that it was ready to face all challenges. “If you have the courage, attack us. We are ready.”
The Sena and the BJP contested the October Assembly polls together and won 161 seats between them, before the Uddhav Thackeray-led party’s insistence on equal sharing of the chief ministerial tenure led to acrimony and stalemate in government formation.
In the wake of the Supreme Court judgment on the Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land title dispute on November 9, Mr. Thackeray had announced he would visit the temple town in Uttar Pradesh on November 24.
“The government formation process is taking time. Leaders of the three parties (Sena, NCP and Congress) are holding meetings. They are inching towards government formation. In view of these developments, Uddhavji has decided to postpone his visit to Ayodhya,” the Sena leader said.
He also pointed out at the “security concerns” in Ayodhya.
