AYODHYA: Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday attacked predecessor
Uddhav Thackeray for “going against his father’s legacy for the greed of power” and said PM Narendra Modi had fulfilled Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray’s dream by constructing a grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
“Nobody else did anything for the Ram Mandir.
I am happy that the dream of ‘Hindu Hriday Samrat’ Balasaheb Thackeray and crores of ‘Ram bhakts’ is being fulfilled,” Shinde said.
The CM then drew a contrast between Uddhav and Ram. “While Lord Ram took vanvaas (exile) to fulfil his father’s promise, we all saw what happened on the ‘other side (Uddhav)’. People had voted for a BJP-Shiv Sena government (in Maharashtra), but some people took wrong steps, which we rectified 8-9 months back,” Shinde said.
On his first visit to Ayodhya after becoming CM in June last year, Shinde said the ideology of his party (Shiv Sena) and that of the BJP is the same an d they would unfurl the saffron flag all over Maharashtra next year. The assembly polls are due next year. “Balasaheb had coined the slogan of ‘Garv se kaho hum Hindu hain’ ( proudly say we are Hindus),” Shinde said.
Accompanied by Maharashtra deputy CM, BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis, UP minister Swatantra Dev Singh and thousands of Shiv Sainiks, Shinde offered prayers to Ram Lalla and oversaw the construction work of the Ram Temple. “It seems like a dream coming true. The idol will be installed in January next year,” Shinde said.
Shinde and Fadnavis dr ovefrom the helipad where they landed to the Ram Janmabhoomi site in an open jeep, turning the event into a roadshow. “The Ram Temple is not apolitical topic for us, it’s a matter of faith,” the CM said. The CM drew attention to the fact that a ‘sagwan’ wood being used in the Ram Temple is from Maharashtra. “This is our small contribution. ”
Ayodhya will witness rapid progress once the temple’s construction is over and lakhs will benefit, Shinde said. He also praised UP CM
Yogi Adityanath. “Hooligans are scared of ‘bulldozer baba’. Law and order is good and development is going on in full swing,” Shinde said, employing a moniker that many use for the CM’s action of bulldozing criminals’ houses.