Senior politician Uddhav Thackeray sparked outrage on Saturday after accusing the BJP of indulging in ‘power jihad’. He also accused the Eknath Shinde-led ruling dispensation of bribing voters through revdis or freebies. The remarks prompted a sharp rebuttal from the BJP with politicians claiming that the former Maharashtra Chief Minister had “lost his mental balance”.
“Uddhav Thackeray is a frustrated person and this frustration has affected his mind badly. After today's speech, he has shown that he is indeed a member of the Aurangzeb fan club,” said Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.
“I think Uddhav Thackeray has lost his mental balance. He had earlier made wrong comments on PM Modi, Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis. Today, he made wrong comments about the Home Minister of India Amit Shah...Elections are very far, I don't know till then what kind of wrong comments will he make,” added state Minister Girish Mahajan.
Thackeray had lashed out at Amit Shah earlier on Saturday, dubbing him a political descendant of Ahmad Shah Abdali — the Afghan king who defeated the Marathas in the third battle of Panipat.
“If Muslims are with us after we explained to them our Hindutva, then we are (according to the BJP) the Aurangzeb Fan Club. Then what you are doing is power jihad,” Thackeray insisted during a Shiv Sankalp rally in Pune on Saturday.
The Home Minister had previously dubbed Thackeray the “the head of the Aurangzeb fan club” and castigated him for sitting with people who sought pardon for 1993 Mumbai serial blasts convict Yakub Memon.
“Maha Vikas Aghadi is Aurangzeb fan club. This Aurangzeb fan club cannot ensure India's security. Uddhav Thackeray is the leader of this Aurangzeb Fan club. This Fan Club cannot make Maharashtra and India safe. It's only the BJP that can ensure the safety and security of all. Uddhav Thackeray shares his meals with people involved with Kasab, he supports PFI and stands against renaming Aurangabad as Sambhaji Nagar,” Shah said last month.
(With inputs from agencies)
