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Amid row on Shivaji, Maharashtra governor seeks advice from Shah
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has written to Union home minister Amit Shah, saying that he would never think of insult icons like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, while also seeking “advice”
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has written to Union home minister Amit Shah, saying that he would never think of insult icons like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, while also seeking Shah “advice” on the next step.
Koshyari has faced criticism over his remark that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was an “icon of olden times”, triggering calls for his removal from office.
“I cannot even imagine in my dreams to insult icons like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Maharana Pratap and Shri Guru Govind Singh,” he said in the two-page letter to Shah.
Maharashtra’s opposition parties have planned a protest march in Mumbai on December 17, demanding Koshyari’s ouster from Raj Bhavan.
“I told students that some consider Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Nehru, Subhas Chandra Bose as their icons. In Maharashtra’s context, I said that leaders from Dr BR Ambedkar to Nitin Gadkari can be ideal examples in today’s situation… Today, if someone is admiring PM Narendra Modi for taking the country to new heights, it doesn’t mean he or she is disrespecting the ideals of the past,” Koshyari said in his letter written on December 6.
“Not just Maharashtra, the entire country is proud of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj,” he said. “I request you to advise me in the present context,” the last line of the letter said. HT has accessed a copy of the letter.
There was no official word from the Raj Bhavan on the development.
“You are aware that I do not hesitate to express regrets or apologise immediately even if I unintentionally made a mistake,” Koshyari said in the letter.
The governor also appeared to take a dig at former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray. “When some big personalities were staying at home during the Covid-19 pandemic, I, irrespective of my age, walked up to the high altitude forts in Maharashtra on my feet. I did not use a helicopter or any vehicle to reach the top,” he said.
The governor said some portions of one of his speeches delivered at a university event were selectively picked and used for creating controversy. “Some people took a portion of my entire speech at a university, out of the context for criticism. With a reference to the past icons, I was presenting the current eminent personalities who could be the inspiration for the youth,” he said.
Speaking at an event in Aurangabad city after conferring D.Litt degrees on senior BJP leader Nitin Gadkari and NCP chief Sharad Pawar in November, Koshyari said: “Earlier, when you would be asked who is your icon, the answers would be Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhas Chandra Bose and Mahatma Gandhi.” “In Maharashtra, you need not look elsewhere (as) there are so many icons here. While Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is of olden times, there are Ambedkar and Nitin Gadkari”.
With inputs from PTI
