Mumbai: Following recent hostilities between communities in various states, including Maharashtra, Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Raut slammed BJP on Tuesday, warning that if such instances continue, India’s economy will face greater challenges than neighboring Sri Lanka and war-torn Ukraine. The 60-year-old politician also made a connection between the violence in Delhi and the upcoming local elections in the national capital.
On Saturday, violence erupted in Delhi during a procession for Hanuman Jayanti in Jahangirpuri. Several people were hurt, including cops. While Home Minister Amit Shah is keeping an eye on the issue, the Delhi Police have stated that anybody implicated will be prosecuted “regardless of caste, creed, or religion.”
“In the big cities of the country…the way situation is tense or such a situation has been created, it’s highly unfortunate. Riots are happening in the national capital. Delhi is a centre-administered state… it is a union territory,” Raut told reporters, without naming the BJP ruling at the centre.
“Now, the MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) elections are about to take place in the city. First, the elections were pushed beyond the scheduled date. And now riots are taking place. All that’s happening right now… it’s just to win the civic polls. because they’ve no other issue.” The civic polls were postponed in Delhi after the centre told the Election Commission that three civic bodies will be merged into one. After the MCD unification bill was cleared in parliament, the centre on Tuesday said a supervising officer would be appointed soon.
“They don’t have power in Mumbai, therefore the loudspeaker issue has arisen. Other major cities are also being impacted. This has an impact on people who go to work… If the current trend continues, India’s economy would suffer a fate similar to that of Sri Lanka and Ukraine as a result of riot politics.”
While Sri Lanka faces one of the toughest economic crises in decades as a result of the pandemic’s impact on tourism, Ukraine has been fending off a Russian invasion effort since the onslaught began on February 24.
After several BJP officials and MNS’s Raj Thackeray protested to the use of loudspeakers for azaans, Maharashtra is scheduled to decide (Muslim prayers). A political squabble erupted in neighboring Karnataka over the issue as well.
Raut’s comments on Tuesday and his fresh attack on the BJP – once a Sena ally – comes days after tensions during Ram Navami processions in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and other states.
Maharashtra’s Amravati district witnessed tensions on Sunday over hoisting of religious flags.
As an independent media platform, we do not take advertisements from governments and corporate houses. It is you, our readers, who have supported us on our journey to do honest and unbiased journalism. Please contribute, so that we can continue to do the same in future.
