Uddhav Thackeray
Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray has lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the college degree controversy, a day after the Gujarat High Court fined Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Rs 25,000 for requesting PM Modi’s academic credentials.
Sena chief said, “There are many young people with degrees who are unemployed… The fine is Rs 25,000 if the PM is asked to show his degree. What is this college that does not take pride in the fact that it is where the Prime Minister studied?”
The high court had told Mr. Kejriwal that the information he sought was unrelated to the Prime Minister’s role. It claimed that PM Modi’s educational background was already known to the public.
Mr. Thackeray also slammed the BJP, his former ally, over allegations that he forged an alliance with the ideologically opposed Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party solely to become chief minister.
“Yes, we banded together for power. Despite this, we are still together and stronger than ever”, Mr. Thackeray was referring to Sena leader Eknath Shinde’s revolt with over 40 MLAs, which resulted in the formation of a new government with the BJP.
Mr Thackeray accused the BJP of polarising people whenever the opportunity presented itself.
Uddhav Thackeray said, “People are polarised whenever there is an election… Despite having a great Hindu Prime Minister, there is this Hindu Jan Akrosh. They are still holding akrosh sabhas. What good is their greatness?”
He further said, “They accuse me of abandoning Hindutva. Give me at least one instance of me abandoning Hindutva… If you polarise despite taking an oath on the Constitution, you are insulting the Constitution”.
He went on to say that the BJP wants to control the judiciary, which the judiciary has so far prevented. He cited Israel as an example, where citizens led by a labor union rose in opposition to Benjamin Netanyahu’s hard-right government’s contentious push to overhaul the justice system. Mr. Thackeray stated, “This is how democracy works”.
