While stating that a nation ought not to be built along religious lines, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Saturday lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi by remarking that the construction of the Ram Temple would not have been possible without Mr. Modi.
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Mr. Raj Thackeray, who was speaking after a meeting of his party leaders and office-bearers in Mumbai, had recently declared his unconditional support for the Bharatiya Janata Party and Mr. Modi.
“One thing is certain, had he [PM Modi] not been there, despite the SC clearing the decks for the temple, then the Ram Mandir would never have been built,” the MNS chief said, praising the PM for having completed a task that had been hanging fire since 1992.
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Justifying his support for the BJP, Mr. Raj Thackeray, in a dig at the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition and INDIA bloc, said, “On the one hand, you have a weak and confused leadership. On the other, a strong one under Mr. Modi. Hence, we decided to support the BJP.”
At the time of the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Mr. Raj Thackeray had run a vigorous anti-BJP campaign and had spoken out against Mr. Modi, while campaigning of behalf of parties like Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party.
Responding to accusations about his ever-shifting stance, the MNS chief, in a gibe at his estranged cousin, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, said, “People say that Raj Thackeray keeps changing his stance. But what about those who had changed their stance after getting elected in 2014.”
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Mr. Raj Thackeray stressed that while he had criticised the BJP and the PM Modi of “certain issues”, he was the first to welcome the good things done by the Modi government.
“I haven’t really changed my stance. I had opposed the BJP on certain issues, and not because I wanted the CM’s post or I was upset that someone had split my party. I was among the first to welcome the scrapping Article 370,” he said, in a thinly-veiled barb at Mr. Uddhav Thackeray.
He further said he had not yet decided whether he would campaign for the ruling Mahayuti parties despite the MNS chief’s photo already featuring in campaign posters of candidates like Sunetra Pawar, who is the ruling coalition’s candidate for the Baramati Lok Sabha seat.
Mr. Raj Thackeray said that he had certain demands regarding Maharashtra, including awarding the classical language status to Marathi and the restoration of forts in the State which would be conveyed to the BJP.