A Twitter war over a statement by former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis escalated on Wednesday with Shiv Sena leader and Environment Minister Aaditya Thackeray shooting off a reply only to be countered by Mr. Fadnavis’s wife Amruta. The Sena leaders too trolled her as a result.
Questioning the silence of the Sena over a communal remark made by AIMIM leader Waris Pathan, Mr. Fadnavis had said while speaking at a rally held at Azad Maidan that the ‘BJP is not wearing bangles like the Shiv Sena’ and will not keep quiet on the issue.
Reacting to the remark, Mr. Thackeray sought an apology from Mr. Fadnavis. “Shri @Dev_Fadnavis ji, normally I choose not to comment back. Kindly apologise abt bangles comment: bangles are worn by the strongest of all- the women. Politics can go on, but we need to change this discourse. Rather disgraceful coming from a fmr CM,” he tweeted on Wednesday morning.
‘Not a sign of weakness’
Speaking to reporters at the Assembly, Mr. Thackeray said wearing bangles cannot be a sign of weakness. “A woman works at office, at home, everywhere. She does things which many a time, a man cannot do. Insulting a woman by using the analogy of bangles should not happen. I demand an apology from the former chief minister,” he said. Later, Mr. Fadnavis retracted his statement.
Coming to the rescue of her husband, Ms. Fadnavis tweeted, “A cocooned worm will never understand the ‘Pun’ of life ! It’s meant to thrive on the glory of the silken life woven for its comfort by its ancestors @AUThackeray! Proud of ur struggles @Dev_Fadnavis & each and every hardworking member of @BJP4Maharashtra.”
It led to members of the Sena trolling her. “Most will not understand your meaningless pun, but hearing the cover version of Hello sure was fun ... way better than the walls that were scribbled at Varsha..;)” tweeted party spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi.
Yuva Sena secretary Varun Sardesai also tweeted, “A worm in regards to what? Being a young politician or being a dynast? Because the last time I checked, @Dev_Fadnavis was both a dynast and a young politician (youngest mayor, I guess) Did you just call your husband a worm?”
