Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday criticised Union home minister Amit Shah for his remarks on Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, saying that the BJP leader had displayed “insolence and contempt.” Uddhav also questioned the silence of NDA partners over the controversy that erupted on Wednesday. He said the statement exposed BJP’s “hypocrisy” and added “their veil was torn.” He stated that BJP was criticising Nehru by name, and now they have started talking about Babasaheb Ambedkar too. He said PM Modi should take action against Amit Shah or leave office. He said, “For the past 2-3 years, and even before that, some fanatical leaders have been insulting Maharashtra, great men, and the gods of Maharashtra. That insult has gone beyond tolerance. When a gentleman named (BS) Koshyari was appointed as governor, he insulted Mahatma Jyotirao Phule and Savitribai Phule. Koshyari also insulted Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. At that time, BJP did not ask him to apologise. He was not removed from office. In the interim, the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was installed in a hurry, and the statue fell in eight months. Everyone knows what happened after that. The importance of Maharashtra is being reduced. Our country’s home minister Amit Shah, with great arrogance and insolence, insulted the great son of the country who gave the country its Constitution. Amit Shah made a bold and arrogant remark that it has become fashionable to mention Ambedkar’s name. This has exposed BJP’s mask of hypocrisy.”
– Chaitanya Marpakwar
