Senior Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut has suggested those opposing the Bharat Ratna for VD Savarkar should spend some time in the Cellular Jail in Andaman and Nicobar, in what could be seen as a veiled jibe at the Congress party.
Raut’s statement could once again trigger tensions between the two alliance partners, who are the part of the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA).
The senior Sena leader was speaking after Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan said that the Congress party will oppose the Bharat Ratna to Savarkar.
Watch | Those opposing Savarkar should be put in Cellular jail for 2 days: Sanjay Raut
“Those who oppose Savarkar, whether it is due to ideology or differences, should be made to spend time at the Cellular Jail. Savarkar spent 14 years facing huge hardship. These people will realise the sacrifice and hardships he faced there,” said Raut.
Sena scion and state environment minister Aaditya Thackeray distanced his party from the statement.
“It is his (Raut’s) personal opinion,” Aaditya Thackeray, who is also the son of Sena president Uddhav Thackeray, said.
“The Shiv Sena-Congress alliance is strong and we came together for the development of the state. We may have different views on certain issues but this is what democracy is. Instead of history, we need to talk of current issues,” Aaditya Thackeray said.
Savarkar is revered by the Shiv Sena and recent comment by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on the Hindutva ideologue and a pamphlet circulated by its Sewa Dal had riled the regional party.
Sanjay Raut had hit out at Rahul Gandhi’s comment in December last year that he will not apologise for his ‘Rape in India’ comment against the government and that his name is ‘Rahul Gandhi and not Rahul ‘Savarkar’.
{{/usCountry}}Sanjay Raut had hit out at Rahul Gandhi’s comment in December last year that he will not apologise for his ‘Rape in India’ comment against the government and that his name is ‘Rahul Gandhi and not Rahul ‘Savarkar’.
{{/usCountry}}Reacting to Raut’s remarks, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP’s) leader Kirit Somaiya asked the Sena if its leader was targeting Rahul Gandhi.
The Shiv Sena has found itself in a tough spot on several political issues after it formed an alliance with the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) to form a coalition government in Maharashtra.
Its leaders, especially Raut, have spoken and reacted against issues that have brought the parties at loggerheads several times. Last week, Raut’s statement on former prime minister Indira Gandhi drew a sharp reaction from the Congress.