News Analysis India

Tag: Hindutva

  • Ajit Pawar blames uncle for insulting him, denying Maharashtra top post

    Express News Service

    MUMBAI: The Maharashtra NCP coup is complete and comprehensive. Sworn in Deputy Chief Minister just the other day, Ajit Pawar on Wednesday hit out at Sharad Pawar, saying his uncle wants to remain the party chief because he wants his daughter Supriya Sule to be the CM. He also said he was “insulted” several times in the past on the question of siding with either Shiv Sena or BJP. The new entrant to the Shinde-Fadnavis team opened up at the Bhujbal Knowledge City at Bandra West on Wednesday.

    “I have been deputy CM. We could have got the chief minister’s post, but my uncle refused it,” he said.“I am fed up with the DCM post. My son asks: ‘Papa how many times will you will be DCM?’” said Ajit.He said Sharad Pawar, 83, should gracefully retire from active politics and hand over the command to his nephew. Out of 53 NCP MLAs, 31 MLAs attended the meeting called by Ajit Pawar at Bandra.

    On the other hand, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said since the day he attended the Opposition meeting in Patna, he suspected that the BJP would split his family and the party. “I will again go to the people,” he said.

    The Sr Pawar’s speech was a veritable counter to Ajit Pawar’s allegations. On why he did not tie up with BJP and formed the government with Shiv Sena, Pawar said Shiv Sena’s Hindutva “is inclusive and takes all castes and communities together.  “It is not like BJP’s ‘myopic Hindutva’ dividing the people on the lines of caste and religion,” he said.

    But Ajit Pawar was unrelenting. “We were in talks with the BJP in 2014, 2016 and 2019. I was sent to talk with BJP; we finalized the distributions of cabinet portfolios. But his uncle changed his mind at the last moment. Due to this, I was humiliated and seen as a villain,” said Ajit.

    “If we can share power with Shiv Sena, then why not with the BJP?” asked Ajit. On his part, Sharad Pawar said the Ajit faction has criticized him but has retained Sr Pawar’s posters and banners.“They know they have no worth in the political market and will not fetch the votes. Therefore, they want to use my photograph. But people are shrewd enough to understand these things,” said senior Pawar.

    MUMBAI: The Maharashtra NCP coup is complete and comprehensive. Sworn in Deputy Chief Minister just the other day, Ajit Pawar on Wednesday hit out at Sharad Pawar, saying his uncle wants to remain the party chief because he wants his daughter Supriya Sule to be the CM. He also said he was “insulted” several times in the past on the question of siding with either Shiv Sena or BJP. The new entrant to the Shinde-Fadnavis team opened up at the Bhujbal Knowledge City at Bandra West on Wednesday.

    “I have been deputy CM. We could have got the chief minister’s post, but my uncle refused it,” he said.
    “I am fed up with the DCM post. My son asks: ‘Papa how many times will you will be DCM?’” said Ajit.
    He said Sharad Pawar, 83, should gracefully retire from active politics and hand over the command to his nephew. Out of 53 NCP MLAs, 31 MLAs attended the meeting called by Ajit Pawar at Bandra.

    On the other hand, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said since the day he attended the Opposition meeting in Patna, he suspected that the BJP would split his family and the party. “I will again go to the people,” he said.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    The Sr Pawar’s speech was a veritable counter to Ajit Pawar’s allegations. On why he did not tie up with BJP and formed the government with Shiv Sena, Pawar said Shiv Sena’s Hindutva “is inclusive and takes all castes and communities together.  “It is not like BJP’s ‘myopic Hindutva’ dividing the people on the lines of caste and religion,” he said.

    But Ajit Pawar was unrelenting. “We were in talks with the BJP in 2014, 2016 and 2019. I was sent to talk with BJP; we finalized the distributions of cabinet portfolios. But his uncle changed his mind at the last moment. Due to this, I was humiliated and seen as a villain,” said Ajit.

    “If we can share power with Shiv Sena, then why not with the BJP?” asked Ajit. On his part, Sharad Pawar said the Ajit faction has criticized him but has retained Sr Pawar’s posters and banners.“They know they have no worth in the political market and will not fetch the votes. Therefore, they want to use my photograph. But people are shrewd enough to understand these things,” said senior Pawar.

  • Avoid unwarranted comments on religious issues: Nadda to MPs   

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI:  Ahead of the 2024 general elections, the BJP seems to have started treading cautiously on religious issues. BJP national president JP Nadda has directed party MPs to avoid making any statement on religious issues which could snowball into major controversies. Nadda’s direction came after party leaders had been mired in disputes over religious issues, the latest one related to the BJP-Congress contest over a religious seer.

    In a virtual meeting, Nadda communicated that only authorised spokespersons of party – after consultation with the organisation’s senior think-tank – would given statements on religious themes like ‘Hindutva’ or ‘Hindu rashtra’.

    Sources in the BJP said that Nadda had asked party MPs that those faithful to any centre of religion – in this case the Bageshwar Dham – should avoid making comment on religious issues or belief. “Any such comment on issues related to religion could either land the party in an spot or may snowball into a bigger controversy,” Nadda reportedly instructed the MPs during online meeting.

    Sharing strategies, in view of the elections in 2024, Nadda said that all party MPs must bring the government’s performance sheet to the common people in their respective constituencies. Nadda also instructed party MPs to take the President’s address, at the joint sitting of both houses of the Parliament, to the common people. President Draupadi Murmu’s inaugural address at the Budget session highlighted the Centre’s policies and plans for the upcoming year.

    Additionally, he asked the MPs to complete organising the of the ‘MP Khel Spardha’ (MP sports competition) as per Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s suggestion. Nadda’s instruction on religious issues also followed party MP Manoj Tiwary’s visit to a religious event held at the Bageshwar Dham where he had reportedly sung a Bhojpuri song and had reportedly spoken on ‘Hindutva’ and ‘Hindu rashtra’.

    NEW DELHI:  Ahead of the 2024 general elections, the BJP seems to have started treading cautiously on religious issues. BJP national president JP Nadda has directed party MPs to avoid making any statement on religious issues which could snowball into major controversies. Nadda’s direction came after party leaders had been mired in disputes over religious issues, the latest one related to the BJP-Congress contest over a religious seer.

    In a virtual meeting, Nadda communicated that only authorised spokespersons of party – after consultation with the organisation’s senior think-tank – would given statements on religious themes like ‘Hindutva’ or ‘Hindu rashtra’.

    Sources in the BJP said that Nadda had asked party MPs that those faithful to any centre of religion – in this case the Bageshwar Dham – should avoid making comment on religious issues or belief. “Any such comment on issues related to religion could either land the party in an spot or may snowball into a bigger controversy,” Nadda reportedly instructed the MPs during online meeting.

    Sharing strategies, in view of the elections in 2024, Nadda said that all party MPs must bring the government’s performance sheet to the common people in their respective constituencies. Nadda also instructed party MPs to take the President’s address, at the joint sitting of both houses of the Parliament, to the common people. President Draupadi Murmu’s inaugural address at the Budget session highlighted the Centre’s policies and plans for the upcoming year.

    Additionally, he asked the MPs to complete organising the of the ‘MP Khel Spardha’ (MP sports competition) as per Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s suggestion. Nadda’s instruction on religious issues also followed party MP Manoj Tiwary’s visit to a religious event held at the Bageshwar Dham where he had reportedly sung a Bhojpuri song and had reportedly spoken on ‘Hindutva’ and ‘Hindu rashtra’.

  • Life on the other side: 20 years after train carnage, communal fissures run deep in Godhra

    By PTI

    GODHRA: A road cleaves through, marking the divide between Muslim-dominated areas and Hindu-majority localities, a metaphor perhaps for communal fissures that run deep in a town that instantly recalls the 2002 Gujarat riots.

    Twenty years after the burning of a train in Godhra killed 59 ‘karsevaks’ and triggered one of India’s worst post-Partition riots, the poll-scape reflects the yawning gulf between the two communities.

    While several minority community residents complain of no development in their localities, people from other areas of the city admit to problems but say they will vote on the issue of Hindutva and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity.

    Corruption, rising unemployment and anti-incumbency against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that has been ruling the state for 27 years remain major issues in this sensitive constituency. However, Hindutva and Modi are determining factors and may triumph over them all.ALSO READ | Taught a lesson to 2002 rioters, says Amit Shah

    The road cuts through Patelwada and Polan Bazaar area near Rani Masjid, the former home to most Hindus and other communities and the latter dominated by Muslims.

    And the differences are visible.

    Polan Bazaar and its surrounding areas are crisscrossed by potholed, shoddily patchworked roads, garbage piled up on the sides and a choked drain winding through a distance away.

    The roads on the other side of the Muslim ghetto are wide.

    The Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) houses small industrial units. There is also a theatre, a Pantaloon showroom, and car showrooms.

    “There are no banks, ATMs, playgrounds on our side of town,” Ishak Bokda, a supporter of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen’s (AIMIM), told PTI.

    “Development has always been on the other side dominated by Hindus and other communities,” added Faisal Suleja, AIMIM’s councillor. The Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM stunned everyone last year by bagging seven seats in the 44-member civic body.

    Godhra has around 2,79,000 voters. Of these, 72,000 are in the Muslim-dominated area.

    As the campaign picks up for the 182-member Assembly elections being held over two phases on December 1 and 5, most bets are on BJP’s sitting MLA C K Raulji who has been representing Godhra since 2007 — from 2007 to 2016 as part of the Congress and the saffron party since 2017.

    Against him are the Congress’ Rashmitaben Chauhan, new entrant Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Rajeshbhai Patel and AIMIM’s Shabbir Kachba who is seeking to cement the gains made by the party in the civic polls last year.

    Kachba, a 33-year-old local imam, accused Raulji of not addressing the issues faced by the constituency, which votes in the second phase.

    “More importantly, how can a person who called Bilkis Bano case convicts ‘sanskari’ be elected,” he said, referring to Raulji’s comments on those convicted in the 2002 gangrape and murder case. They have now been freed.

    According to Raulji, his main agenda will be to fully implement the projects started in 2017, including a 400-bed medical college and an irrigation project for 104 villages.

    The pandemic, lack of opportunities and development are a constant concern.

    No riots have been reported after 2002 from this town in the Panchmahal district of Gujarat which has had a chequered history of communal riots since Independence.

    The polarisation is evident. Many expressed their disappointment with the ruling BJP but said they would again vote for the party.

    Manish Shah, 48, a restaurateur and real estate developer who lost his mother to Covid and said lack of major industries and corruption are major issues in Godhra.

    “But we will vote on the issue of Hindutva and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity,” Shah told PTI. Shah said he owned an oil depot on a road that borders the Muslim area of the city but sold his property in 2011 and ventured into real estate.

    His business partner Indubhai Bhojwani, 53, said corruption is an issue “but the safety of Hindus is an important factor.”

    Mukeshbhai Relwani, 47, who owns a paan shop at Lalbaug Chowk said he will “bleed lotus (the symbol of BJP)” if his vein is cut. “That (the other side where the Muslims reside) is mini-Pakistan. My vote will be for Hindutva,” he said reflecting the distrust between the two communities.ALSO READ | No material to support 2002 Godhra riots were pre-planned events: SC

    However, Relwani also said the BJP would have been certainly defeated if the opposition had fielded stronger candidates.

    “There is no option,” said a businessman on condition of anonymity.

    Harin Patel, 43, who is into mining said he had to send his son away to study engineering because Godhra lacks colleges that provide quality education.

    Some in the younger lot spoke of their willingness to give the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP a chance. Primary factors, they said, were unemployment and lack of opportunities.

    Deepak Padhiyar, 19, a second-year student at the Seth PT Arts and Science and Law College said he had applied for the post of a police constable but could not clear the written exam but his quest for a better life will continue.

    His father is a cobbler with the State Reserve Police Force and his mother is a homemaker who also takes care of their footwear shop.

    “There is hardly any income from the shop. Now I want to apply for the post of Talati (revenue officer). This time my preference will be to AAP,” Padhiyar said, citing the ‘Delhi model of governance’.

    Srimali Kirit (22), a first-year law student, claimed unemployment is a crucial factor here.

    “This (BJP) government is emphasising on contractual workers who have no pension. There is need for government jobs with the implementation of the old pension scheme that will give workers protection after retirement,” Kirit said.

    Kirit said his father is no more and his mother gets a pension of Rs 12,000 and another pension of Rs 1,200 under a central scheme for widows, not enough for the family to sustain their livelihood.

    The AAP has been pushing for the old pension scheme (OPS) in Gujarat if it is voted to power.

    The Gujarat government introduced a new contributory pension scheme for employees joining the service on or after April 1, 2005. According to the notification, it will make a matching contribution of 10 per cent of the basic pay plus dearness allowance contributed by the employees in the NPS fund.

    Under the Centre’s scheme, the government will contribute 14 per cent against an employee’s contribution of 10 per cent of his/her salary and DA with effect from April 1, 2019.

    After protests by employees, the state government said the new pension will not be applicable to those employees who had joined duty before April 2005.

    It also promised to increase its contribution to the fund to 14 per cent from 10 per cent earlier.

    The employees have staged massive agitations against the government in Gujarat while demanding restoration of the OPS because they believe the NPS is not in the interest of retiring employees.

    GODHRA: A road cleaves through, marking the divide between Muslim-dominated areas and Hindu-majority localities, a metaphor perhaps for communal fissures that run deep in a town that instantly recalls the 2002 Gujarat riots.

    Twenty years after the burning of a train in Godhra killed 59 ‘karsevaks’ and triggered one of India’s worst post-Partition riots, the poll-scape reflects the yawning gulf between the two communities.

    While several minority community residents complain of no development in their localities, people from other areas of the city admit to problems but say they will vote on the issue of Hindutva and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity.

    Corruption, rising unemployment and anti-incumbency against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that has been ruling the state for 27 years remain major issues in this sensitive constituency. However, Hindutva and Modi are determining factors and may triumph over them all.ALSO READ | Taught a lesson to 2002 rioters, says Amit Shah

    The road cuts through Patelwada and Polan Bazaar area near Rani Masjid, the former home to most Hindus and other communities and the latter dominated by Muslims.

    And the differences are visible.

    Polan Bazaar and its surrounding areas are crisscrossed by potholed, shoddily patchworked roads, garbage piled up on the sides and a choked drain winding through a distance away.

    The roads on the other side of the Muslim ghetto are wide.

    The Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) houses small industrial units. There is also a theatre, a Pantaloon showroom, and car showrooms.

    “There are no banks, ATMs, playgrounds on our side of town,” Ishak Bokda, a supporter of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen’s (AIMIM), told PTI.

    “Development has always been on the other side dominated by Hindus and other communities,” added Faisal Suleja, AIMIM’s councillor. The Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM stunned everyone last year by bagging seven seats in the 44-member civic body.

    Godhra has around 2,79,000 voters. Of these, 72,000 are in the Muslim-dominated area.

    As the campaign picks up for the 182-member Assembly elections being held over two phases on December 1 and 5, most bets are on BJP’s sitting MLA C K Raulji who has been representing Godhra since 2007 — from 2007 to 2016 as part of the Congress and the saffron party since 2017.

    Against him are the Congress’ Rashmitaben Chauhan, new entrant Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Rajeshbhai Patel and AIMIM’s Shabbir Kachba who is seeking to cement the gains made by the party in the civic polls last year.

    Kachba, a 33-year-old local imam, accused Raulji of not addressing the issues faced by the constituency, which votes in the second phase.

    “More importantly, how can a person who called Bilkis Bano case convicts ‘sanskari’ be elected,” he said, referring to Raulji’s comments on those convicted in the 2002 gangrape and murder case. They have now been freed.

    According to Raulji, his main agenda will be to fully implement the projects started in 2017, including a 400-bed medical college and an irrigation project for 104 villages.

    The pandemic, lack of opportunities and development are a constant concern.

    No riots have been reported after 2002 from this town in the Panchmahal district of Gujarat which has had a chequered history of communal riots since Independence.

    The polarisation is evident. Many expressed their disappointment with the ruling BJP but said they would again vote for the party.

    Manish Shah, 48, a restaurateur and real estate developer who lost his mother to Covid and said lack of major industries and corruption are major issues in Godhra.

    “But we will vote on the issue of Hindutva and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity,” Shah told PTI. Shah said he owned an oil depot on a road that borders the Muslim area of the city but sold his property in 2011 and ventured into real estate.

    His business partner Indubhai Bhojwani, 53, said corruption is an issue “but the safety of Hindus is an important factor.”

    Mukeshbhai Relwani, 47, who owns a paan shop at Lalbaug Chowk said he will “bleed lotus (the symbol of BJP)” if his vein is cut. “That (the other side where the Muslims reside) is mini-Pakistan. My vote will be for Hindutva,” he said reflecting the distrust between the two communities.ALSO READ | No material to support 2002 Godhra riots were pre-planned events: SC

    However, Relwani also said the BJP would have been certainly defeated if the opposition had fielded stronger candidates.

    “There is no option,” said a businessman on condition of anonymity.

    Harin Patel, 43, who is into mining said he had to send his son away to study engineering because Godhra lacks colleges that provide quality education.

    Some in the younger lot spoke of their willingness to give the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP a chance. Primary factors, they said, were unemployment and lack of opportunities.

    Deepak Padhiyar, 19, a second-year student at the Seth PT Arts and Science and Law College said he had applied for the post of a police constable but could not clear the written exam but his quest for a better life will continue.

    His father is a cobbler with the State Reserve Police Force and his mother is a homemaker who also takes care of their footwear shop.

    “There is hardly any income from the shop. Now I want to apply for the post of Talati (revenue officer). This time my preference will be to AAP,” Padhiyar said, citing the ‘Delhi model of governance’.

    Srimali Kirit (22), a first-year law student, claimed unemployment is a crucial factor here.

    “This (BJP) government is emphasising on contractual workers who have no pension. There is need for government jobs with the implementation of the old pension scheme that will give workers protection after retirement,” Kirit said.

    Kirit said his father is no more and his mother gets a pension of Rs 12,000 and another pension of Rs 1,200 under a central scheme for widows, not enough for the family to sustain their livelihood.

    The AAP has been pushing for the old pension scheme (OPS) in Gujarat if it is voted to power.

    The Gujarat government introduced a new contributory pension scheme for employees joining the service on or after April 1, 2005. According to the notification, it will make a matching contribution of 10 per cent of the basic pay plus dearness allowance contributed by the employees in the NPS fund.

    Under the Centre’s scheme, the government will contribute 14 per cent against an employee’s contribution of 10 per cent of his/her salary and DA with effect from April 1, 2019.

    After protests by employees, the state government said the new pension will not be applicable to those employees who had joined duty before April 2005.

    It also promised to increase its contribution to the fund to 14 per cent from 10 per cent earlier.

    The employees have staged massive agitations against the government in Gujarat while demanding restoration of the OPS because they believe the NPS is not in the interest of retiring employees.

  • ‘Governments not toeing Hindutva ‘not safe’ under BJP-led dispensation at Centre’: Yashwant Sinha

    By PTI

    CHENNAI: Yashwant Sinha, the Opposition nominee for the next month’s Presidential election, on Thursday alleged that any government which believes in the Constitution and secularism and does not believe in Hindutva is not safe in this country.

    Addressing a meeting of DMK and its allies which extended support to him, Sinha said they (BJP) have found a scapegoat to occupy the ‘exalted chair’ of the Chief Minister of Maharashtra.

    Sinha said, “But what does this show? This shows that this ruling party at the Centre and the government of India have absolutely no respect for the federal structure of our Constitution.”

    They are violating one convention after convention of the Constitution, he alleged.

    “I was listening to the speech of the leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Maharashtra and he was constantly talking of Hindutva and he was saying that we brought down this government because it did not believe in Hindutva. Which means that any government which believes in the Constitution, which does not believe in Hindutva but believes in secularism is not safe in this country,” he said.

    “Me agreeing to contest the Presidential election is ‘a continuous struggle’ against the alleged excesses of the Central government and the BJP that runs it. Until 2014, I was heading the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance,” Sinha said and added that it was in sync with the tradition that a person from the Opposition should be helming it.

    “Now, a ruling party member heads that committee. It is another matter that he happens to be my son (Jayant Sinha). But I have no hesitation in saying that this is a wrong practice,” he said.

    Sinha assured that he would strictly uphold the Constitution and its provisions if elected to the office of the President.

    On his arrival at the DMK headquarters ‘Anna Arivalayam’, Sinha was welcomed and taken into the party office by Stalin and he presided over a meet of his party and its allies which extended their support to the former Union Minister.

    While Stalin hailed Sinha as a ‘man of eminence’, MDMK chief and Rajya Sabha member Vaiko said, ‘We all are with you’.

    Leaders of DMK’s alliance parties, including the Congress party’s (legislature party leader) K Selvaperunthagai, spoke assuring whole-hearted support to Sinha.

    Representatives of the Left parties and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi also promised support to Sinha.

  • Taking Balasaheb’s Hindutva, Shiv Sena forward: Shinde

    Express News Service

    GUWAHATI:  Six days after landing in Guwahati, Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde made his first appearance before the media on Tuesday, saying the rebel MLAs are abiding by Bal Thackeray’s ideology. Shinde was on his way out of the five-star Radisson Blu hotel when he approached the journalists stationed outside the hotel’s entrance. He told them that party spokesperson Deepak Kesarkar would keep updating them.

    “Our spokesperson Kesarkar is regularly providing you information on our role and stand. We are taking Balasaheb Thackeray’s ideals about Hindutva and the Shiv Sena forward. There is no confusion about it,” Shinde said. “We will inform you when we decide on our next step.” 

    Shinde also said something in Marathi for the convenience of Marathi journalists visiting from Maharashtra to cover the issue. According to sources, Shinde and the rebel camp he is leading would leave for Mumbai on Thursday. Sources added that Shinde has denied reports that he would visit Delhi. 

  • Veer Savarkar sang Sant Tukaram’s abhangs in jail, says PM Modi

    By PTI

    DEHU: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said Hindutva ideologue Veer Savarkar sang abhangs (devotional poetry in praise of Lord Vitthal) of Sant Tukaram while in jail during India’s freedom struggle.

    “While in jail, Veer Savarkar used his handcuffs like the chipli (a musical instrument) of Sant Tukaram and sang his abhangs,” Modi said.

    He was addressing a gathering of warkaris (devotees undertaking the pilgrimage to Lord Vitthal temple at Pandharpur), after inaugurating a shila (rock) temple at the Sant Tukaram Maharaj Mandir dedicated to the 17th-century saint at Dehu near Pune.

    Modi also interacted with the warkaris during his visit, which comes ahead of the annual ‘wari’ pilgrimage which will commence on June 20 from Dehu. The Prime Minister was also presented with a special headgear, the Tukaram pagdi, on the occasion.

    Lauding Sant Tukaram, a prominent figure in the Bhakti movement, Modi said he played an important role in the life of a ‘Rashtra Nayak’ like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.

    Built with a special type of Rajasthani stone, the Shila temple is a temple dedicated to a slab of stone on which Sant Tukaram had meditated for 13 days. Warkaris offer prayers at the Shila temple before starting their pilgrimage to Pandharpur.

    A new idol of Sant Tukaram has also been installed in the temple near the ‘Shila Mandir’. Sant Tukaram was famous for his devotional poetry known as abhang and spiritual songs known as kirtan. His works are central to the warkari sect in Maharashtra.

    Dehu, on the banks of the Indrayani river, is the birthplace of the poet saint.

    Modi said the construction of Sant Dnyaneshwar Maharaj and Sant Tukaram Maharaj palkhi marg will be completed in five phases and Rs 11,000 crore will be spent to construct the 350-km (Alandi-Dehu-Pandharpur) highway.

    Modi said Sant Tukaram had meditated for 13 days by sitting on the shila (rock) to bring the Vedas back. “It is not just a shila but is the foundation stone of bhakti (devotion) and dnyan (realisation),” he said.

    We are proud that India is one of the oldest living civilizations in the world and the credit goes to sants and sages, he said.

    “India is a land of sants and in every period, some great souls came to give directions to the society. Today when the country is going ahead based on our cultural values, the ‘abhangs’ are showing us the path and inspiring us,” he added.

    The PM said Sant Tukaram used to say that discrimination among humans is a big sin.

    “This message is not only important for Bhagwat bhakti, but also Rastra bhakti (patriotism) and Samaj bhakti (service to society). With these messages, our ‘warkari’ brothers and sisters set on the journey to Pandharpur every year,” he said referring to ‘Wari’.

    With this message, the country is moving forward with the concept of ‘sabka sath, sabka vikas, sabka vishwas and sabka prayas’.

    The PM said that along the lines of ‘warkaris’, the country is also progressing with the empowerment of women.

    “The wari has been a symbol of equal opportunities as women warkaris also walk side by side with their male counterparts with the same zeal and zest. Similarly, the government is also providing the benefits of welfare schemes to everyone without discrimination,” he said.

    He added the welfare of Dalits, backwards, tribals, and the poor is the priority of the country.

    Modi said a true saint’s identity is that he strives for the welfare of the last person and this is the resolve of our ‘antyoday’ yojana.

    The PM said various yatras in the country are the sources of power for the social and spiritual progress.

    “With these yatras, we keep the concept of ‘Ek Bharat Shresth Bharat’ alive. These yatras connect the diversity of our country. To strengthen the unity of our country, we should keep our ancient identity alive,” he added.

    The PM also said technology and infrastructure are becoming synonymous with India’s progress, “we are ensuring that heritage and development go hand in hand”.

    Referring to scriptures, he said ‘satsang’ of sants is the rarest privilege in human life. “If the grace of sants is felt, then the realisation of God automatically takes place. Coming to this holy pilgrimage land of Dehu today, I am feeling the same,” he said.

    He also said a pledge should be taken to keep cleanliness in every sphere of life. “These national pledges should become part of spiritual pledges,” the PM added even as he demanded a push for natural farming and the popularisation of Yoga and Yoga Day.

  • ‘No one should teach Hindutva to Shiv Sena’: Sanjay Raut hits back at Raj Thackeray

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Wednesday asserted that there was no violation of loudspeaker guidelines in Maharashtra and said no one should teach Hindutva to his party.

    Without taking names of the BJP and MNS, Raut told reporters that people do not take cognisance of people who, with the support of “pseudo Hindutvawadis”, conspire against the Shiv Sena.

    Notably, MNS chief Raj Thackeray has been targeting the ruling Shiv Sena in Maharashtra and has given a call for “silencing” loudspeakers atop mosques.

    Raut said, “There is no violation of loudspeakers (guidelines) in Maharashtra. The state is working according to the guidelines on loudspeakers laid down by the Supreme Court. If anyone is violating the law, then the government is capable of (tackling) it.”

    “The situation has not reached a level where an agitation (on the loudspeaker issue) is needed in Mumbai or Maharashtra. All mosques have taken permission for the use of loudspeakers,” the Rajya Sabha member said.

    His remarks came after the MNS chief on Wednesday tweeted an old video of late Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray, in which the latter was seen saying the day his party comes to power, offering namaz on roads will be stopped and loudspeakers from mosques will be removed.

    To this, Raut said, “We have not stooped that low. We still run on his principles. Balasaheb had taken a stand on loudspeakers and offering of namaz on road. He stopped it after coming to power. No one should teach Hindutva to the Shiv Sena.”

    The Shiv Sena’s chief spokesperson, without naming Raj Thackeray said the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government (comprising the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress) was running as per law and not on anyone’s ultimatum.

    “Maharashtra has a Thackeray government. Even if the state has a Maha Vikas Aghadi government, it is helmed by Uddhav Thackeray. He is the Sena chief, son of Hinduhriday Samrat Bal Thackeray. So, he doesn’t have to take advice on praying on roads during namaz and illegal loudspeakers on masjids,” Raut said.

    Asked about MNS workers playing the Hanuman Chalisa near some mosques, he said, “I have not seen any agitation. If there are no unauthorised loudspeakers, then you have to decide whether you are staging a protest or doing an illegal act.”

    Meanwhile, trouble mounted for Raj Thackeray after the Aurangabad police on Tuesday registered an offence against him over his “provocative” speech on loudspeakers atop mosques two days ago, while the Maharashtra DGP said appropriate legal action will be taken against him over the issue.

    In related developments, a court in western Maharashtra’s Sangli district has issued a non-bailable warrant (NBW) against Raj Thackeray in connection with a 14-year-old case, while the Mumbai police served him a notice under a CrPC section related to prevention of cognizable offences.

    Sending out a blunt message to the MNS president over his May 3 deadline for removal of loudspeakers from mosques, the ruling Shiv Sena said the state does not run on ultimatums and that the rule of law prevails here even as some MNS leaders warned they will hit the streets in case of further action against their leader.

    The police in Aurangabad, located more than 350km from Mumbai in central Maharashtra, on Tuesday registered a case against Raj Thackeray, two days after he called for “silencing” loudspeakers atop mosques from May 4, an official said.

    The 53-year-old politician was booked under sections 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot), 116 (abetment of an offence punishable with imprisonment if the offence be not committed) and 117 (abetting commission of the offence by the public or by more than 10 persons) of the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the Maharashtra Police Act, the official told reporters.

    In the Aurangabad rally on May 1, the MNS chief had asked people to play the Hanuman Chalisa outside mosques from May 4 if loudspeakers there were not removed.

    Unfazed by registration of the case, Raj Thackeray in the evening urged people to play the Hanuman Chalisa on loudspeakers on Wednesday wherever they hear loudspeakers “blaring azaan (Islamic prayer call)”.

    In an open letter, he asked people to lodge complaint with the police by dialing 100 if they are distributed by the sound of ‘azaan’.

    “One must complain daily,” the MNS leader said.

    “I appeal to all Hindus that tomorrow, the 4th of May, if you hear the loudspeaker blaring with azaan; in those places, play Hanuman Chalisa on loudspeakers. That’s when they will realise the hindrance of these loudspeakers,” Raj Thackeray said in the letter.

    Late in the evening, the Mumbai police served a notice to the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief under CrPC section 149 related to preventing cognizable offences, an official said.

    The Shivaji Park police station official said the notice has been served as a precautionary measure.

    The police have issued precautionary notices under various sections of the CrPC (Code of Criminal Procedure) to more than 300 people in the Central Mumbai region, including prominent MNS leaders, he said.

    Notices under section 149 of the CrPC are served to prevent cognisable offences.

    Cognizable offences are those in which the police can arrest someone without any warrant.

    Earlier in the day, Maharashtra DGP Rajnish Seth said the Aurangabad police commissioner will take appropriate legal action against Raj Thackeray over his speech against loudspeakers atop mosques.

    “The Aurangabad CP is looking into the speech. He will take whatever legal action that is needed today itself,” the DGP told reporters in Mumbai.

    Notices under section 149 of the CrPC have been issued to over 13,000 people, Seth said.

    Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil, Seth and senior police officials reviewed the law-and-order situation in the state in the backdrop of the MNS chief’s deadline on the removal of loudspeakers.

    “The Maharashtra police are capable of handling any kind of law-and-order situation. SRPF and Home Guards have been deployed in the state,” Seth said.

    The leaves of all police personnel have been cancelled, the DGP said.

    A court in Sangli district has issued a non-bailable warrant against the MNS chief in connection with a 14-year-old case.

    In 2008, Raj Thackeray was booked under sections 109 and 117 (abetment of offence) of IPC for allegedly making inflammatory speeches.

    While issuing the non-bailable warrant on April 6, Judicial Magistrate, First Class, at Shirala in Sangli district asked the Mumbai police commissioner to arrest the MNS chief and present him before the court.

    The judge issued the warrant against Raj Thackeray and another MNS leader Shirish Parkar through the Mumbai police commissioner and the Kherwadi police station, respectively, as they failed to appear before the court during the case proceeding, said assistant public prosecutor Jyoti Patil.

    She said the court has asked the police to implement the warrant before June 8 and produce both the leaders before the court.

    In 2008, MNS workers staged a protest in Shirala against the arrest of Raj Thackeray in an agitation seeking priority for local youth in jobs.

    Talking to reporters in Mumbai, Shiv Sena MP and the party’s chief spokesperson Sanjay Raut said suitable action will follow if someone gives inflammatory speeches.

    “The government does not run on an ultimatum. There is rule of law in the state,” Raut said.

    MNS leaders warned they will hit the streets in case of further action against their party head.

    The party’s Thane district president, Avinash Jadhav, criticised Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray over the issue of the removal of loudspeakers from mosques.

    Jadhav claimed it was Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray who had first demanded the removal of loudspeakers from mosques, but his son (Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray) has booked Raj Thackeray for making a similar demand.

  • BJP doesn’t hold Hindutva patent: Uddhav, says Bal Thackeray led saffron agenda

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said the BJP doesn’t hold “patent” on Hindutva and claimed that the late Sena supremo Bal Thackeray had showed BJP that the combination of “saffron and Hindutva” will help in achieving power in Centre.

    Thackeray also said Sena has always been committed to the “bhagva” (saffron) and Hindutva “unlike BJP which had different names like Bharatiya Jan Sangh and Jan Sangh which propagated different ideologies”.

    Joining virtually the campaign for Maha Vikas Aghadi’s (MVA) candidate Jayashree Jadhav, who belongs to Congress, for the April 12 bypoll from the Kolhapur North seat, Thackeray also blamed BJP for the defeat of the Shiv Sena nominee from the constituency in the 2019 polls despite the alliance between the two parties at that time.

    He wondered if BJP had had a hidden alliance with Congress in this constituency in the 2019 polls.

    “The BJP doesn’t have the patent for Hindutva. I wonder had Lord Ram not been born what issue the BJP would have raised in politics. Since BJP is bereft of issues it is talking about religion and (spreading) hatred,” Thackeray said.

    Thackeray said it was his father Bal Thackeray who had shown them (BJP) that saffron and Hindutva will lead them on the road to Delhi.

    Speaking on the Kolhapur North bypoll, Thackeray said that votes of Congress increased in the 2019 polls ((in Kolhapur North) compared to the 2014 elections which resulted in the defeat of Shiv Sena’s nominee despite the alliance with the BJP.

    “Where did the BJP’s votes go in 2019? Did you (BJP) have a hidden alliance with Congress at that time?” Thackeray asked.

    Thackeray also said that if the BJP claims to respect Bal Thackeray then why is that party opposing the proposal to name the upcoming Navi Mumbai international airport after the late Sena founder.

    “Why has the BJP gone back on its word and commitment given by (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah in Balasaheb’s room which I consider a temple,” Thackeray asked, in an apparent reference to his claim that BJP had promised the CM’s post to Sena in the 2019 polls.

    The issue of sharing the chief minister’s post after the state elections in 2019 led to the break up between the Sena and the BJP. The BJP and Shah had rejected Thackeray’s claims regarding the purported promise on the CM’s post.

    Thackeray, whose party heads the Maha Vikas Aghadi government which includes NCP and Congress, also said that the MVA alliance experiment is successful. “This is the reason that Sena didn’t stake the claim for the Kolhapur North seat,” he said.

    Thackeray said MVA partners discussed in a recent meeting if they are falling short. “We realised that it is not the governance and administration we are lacking but we are falling short in spreading lies,” he said in a dig at BJP.

    Thackeray said that votes of Congress increased in the 2019 polls (in Kolhapur North) compared to the 2014 elections which resulted in the defeat of Shiv Sena’s nominee despite the alliance with the BJP at that time.

    “The BJP had severed ties with Sena in the 2014 elections. In that election, the Sena candidate won 69,736 votes in the Kolhapur North assembly segment while the BJP secured 40,104 votes. Congress polled 47,315 votes.” For 2019 polls, Shiv Sena and BJP joined hands once again but the Sena nominee bagged 75,854 votes, a meagre rise of 5,000-6,000 votes.

    The Congress candidate secured 91,000 votes. “I want to ask where did BJP’s 40,000 votes go? Who will clarify if these votes were transferred to Congress? Shiv Sena plays its politics openly and is not a backstabber,” the Sena chief said.

    In the 2019 assembly elections, Congress candidate Chandrakant Jadhav defeated then Shiv Sena MLA Rajesh Kshirsagar to win the Kolhapur North segment.

    Jadhav’s death necessitated the April 12 byelection. MVA candidate Jayashree Jadhav, wife of the late Jadhav, will face BJP’s Satyajit Kadam in the upcoming bypoll.

    The contest is seen as the first direct face-off between Congress and BJP after the Sena decided to not stake a claim for the Kolhapur North constituency.

  • ‘Failed to check surge of Hindutva forces’, admits CPM on national setbacks

    Express News Service

    KANNUR: On an introspective mode after back-to-back electoral and political setbacks at the national level, the CPM has set in motion the rectification process. The failure in cashing in on people’s agitations and converting them to mass agitations has been pointed out. 

    With its ever shrinking political space, the CPM feels it failed to effectively counter the Sangh Parivar’s Hindutva ideology and propaganda. The organisational report presented at the 23rd party congress has been highly self critical for the leadership’s failure in implementing many decisions.

    The party’s membership has seen a major decline after the last party congress when the membership came down to 9.85 lakh in 2021 from 10.07 lakh in 2018. 

    “The Hindutva campaign is highly dangerous as it engulfs other sectors like socio-cultural spheres, and has been trying to replace historical facts with mythology and superstitions. However the CPM couldn’t effectively counter the spread of this ideology,” said a top leader. 

    The party which looked at its structural and ideological failures in opposing Hindutva, observed that it should’ve run effective counter campaigns.

    “While we say that scientific temper should be maintained and history is being replaced, we need to effectively campaign and communicate. That has not been done. Now the party is thinking about running effective campaigns through literature and other measures,” he added. 

    Most delegates who spoke on the report cited urgent need of rectification measures. It was pointed out that many of the decisions taken at the last Party Congress were not implemented. The Politburo cited the pandemic as reason for the same.

    However the delegates who spoke at the meeting were not happy with the explanation. They said it’s a grave lapse on the part of the central leadership and should be rectified without fail. 

    “The delegates however bought the explanation with a pinch of salt, as they pointed out that a few other historic struggles like the peasants and workers movements happened during this period. Some of them were of the opinion that the central leadership wasted the first two years. Had they attempted, there could’ve been results is how they saw it,” said sources. 

    The politburo also identified areas for improvement. Weakness in grassroot level implementation too was pointed out. Many decisions taken at the top level are not being executed at the branch level due to lack of structural mechanism at the lower level. Many decisions remain only on paper.

    The leadership’s failure to effectively convert people’s struggles to major campaigns too was pointed out. The organisational report has pointed out the need to educate people from states, where the BJP is not a major force, about the threat posed by the Sangh Parivar.

    Briefing the media, PB member Prakash Karat admitted that there are decisions which could have and should have been implemented, but which couldn’t implement due to different reasons. 

    “We couldn’t implement many decisions taken during the last Party Congress. It’s due to many factors including those that are beyond our control. Now the focus is how to build up the party’s independent strength,” he said. 

    KN Balagopal who opened the debate on Kerala was highly critical of the central leadership. He pointed out that despite its strength and concentration in Delhi, the central leadership failed to effectively intervene in national politics.

    Other than frequent press notes and media conferences, nothing substantial was done. He also criticised the leadership for not taking enough measures to induct more youngsters through vibrant student political programmes. 

    Many other delegates too spoke on similar lines. The leadership will respond to the discussion on Sunday, after which the party will elect its new leadership including three new Central Committee and Politburo members. 

  • Ram Mandir only ‘one of the poll issues’ as UP voters seek development 

    By PTI

    LUCKNOW: The construction of Ram temple seems to have been relegated to “one of the poll issues” in Ayodhya this time as competing parties are raking up development topics and also relying on caste arithmetic for victory.

    The BJP, for whom the temple town sharpened its Hindutva plank, is facing a challenge particularly from the Samajwadi Party (SP) in the ongoing state polls. With 10 candidates in fray, the Ayodhya Assembly segment will go to vote in the fifth phase on February 27.

    After it became clear that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath would not contest from Ayodhya, the party reposed faith in sitting MLA Ved Prakash Gupta, while the SP has fielded former minister Tej Narayan alias Pawan Pandey. The BSP, Congress and AAP, too, have fielded their candidates in Ayodhya, thereby making it a multi-cornered contest.

    “It is going to be a close contest in the Ayodhya Assembly constituency. As far as the issue of Ram temple is concerned, the BJP was not able to derive optimum mileage during this election initially. The issue started cropping up only after the third phase of the polls,” Mahant Raju Das of Hanumangarhi temple told PTI.

    He said while the distribution of ration to the poor has benefitted people in rural areas, a number of party leaders, on the other hand, were of the view that they will be able to garner enough votes only with Modi and Adityanath’s credentials. They did not want to mingle with the people and connect with them, he said.

    ALSO READ | Voters have blessed BJP in first four phases of UP polls, says PM Modi 

    On whether the scene would have been different if Adityanath were to contest from Ayodhya, the mahant said, “There is no opposition to the BJP, there was an opposition only towards the candidate.

    ” SP candidate Pawan Pandey told PTI, “Lord Ram and the Ram temple are not the fiefdom of the BJP. Prabhu Shri Ram belongs to all of us. Even when the BJP did not exist, Lord Ram did.”

    When asked whether he had heaved a sigh of relief after Adityanath decided not to contest from the Ayodhya seat, Pandey said it would have made no difference “even if Prime Minister Narendra Modi was named the candidate” (from Ayodhya).

    A firebrand student leader from Lucknow University, Pandey had trounced the saffron party’s local giant and incumbent MP from Ayodhya Lallu Singh in the 2012 Assembly elections. He had,however, lost to Gupta in 2017.

    Pandey also alleged that the BJP has indulged in exploiting farmers, harassing traders and the Ayodhya Municipal Corporation has also significantly increased the tax.

    “We will roll it back,” he said. He said cows in cow shelters had allegedly died due to shortage of fodder and water. “They (BJP) claim to be ‘Ram bhakts’ (devotees of Lord Ram), but Adityanath and his government are killers of the cows,” he said.

    ALSO READ | VHP workers fan out across constituencies to distribute prasad, temple soil 

    BJP nominee Gupta, when asked about a section of the people being miffed at his candidature, said, “You cannot satisfy each and every person in politics. I have not been able to please my family. However, I can say that work for the people has been done and development has taken place. Yogi has done a lot of development in Ayodhya.”

    By fielding a Brahmin, the SP is trying to exploit the upper caste displeasure with the BJP government. Out of about 3.81 lakh electors in Ayodhya seat, Brahmins account for over 62,000 while Vaishya voters number 51,000, Muslims 55,000 and Yadavs 37,000.

    Iqbal Ansari, who was an independent litigant and son of one of the oldest litigants in the Ram Janambhoomi-Babri mosque dispute case, Mohammad Hashim Ansari, said, “People now want development and jobs.”

    “People of Ayodhya are now drifting away from the ‘mandir-masjid issue’, and talking about development and only development. It has already been two years since the Supreme Court gave its judgement. However, some people try to make the temple-mosque an election issue. The temple-mosque may remain one of the issues in this election, but not the biggest among the poll issues.”

    “Earlier, the Hindus and Muslims used to fight over it, but now there is nothing as such. The main issues in this election is price rise, which has affected almost each and every household,” he said.

    BSP candidate Ravi Prakash said the main issues are jobs and development. Shubham Srivastava of the Aam Aadmi Party echoed similar views.

    Ayodhya mayor Rishikesh Upadhyay said, “Ram temple was never an election issue (for us). It was a matter of faith. It was an issue mentioned in the BJP’s ‘Sankalp Patra (election manifesto), and we have fulfilled the promise, which we had made to the people.

    “A local homoeopathy doctor Prajwal Singh said, “The electoral prospects of the BJP were not very good until a few days ago in the district. However, Thursday’s roadshow by Adityanath has done a lot to contain the damage. The party’s condition was not looking good in Ayodhya, Gosainganj and Milkipur Assembly seats. The success of the roadshow is likely to help the saffron party.”