Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray warns BJP against 'jumlas' in name of Lord Ram, beseeches Nitish Kumar & Ram Vilas Paswan to take up Ram Mandir issue

The Shiv Sena asked the BJP on Monday, December 24 to clear its stand on the Ram temple issue and demanded a discussion in Parliament even as it mounted an attack on senior ally-the BJP over a range of issues, including the Rafale jet deal.

Targeting the BJP, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray said his party will not allow any 'jumlas' (rhetoric) in the name of Lord Ram or any other Hindu god and asserted those who were voted to power on the temple issue are now sleeping like Kumbhakarn.

Addressing a rally in this temple town in Solapur district, Thackeray, who visited Ayodhya last month, asked BJP allies to clear their stand on the Ram temple issue. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should discuss the matter in Parliament.

"I want to tell BJP one thing, we can forgive you on 'ache din' jumla and the promise of Rs 15 lakh to each person. But we will not forgive you if you come up with one more jumla on our faith or in the name of god. We will beat you up.

 READ: Shiv Sena Chief Uddhav Thackeray Congratulates "fearless Voters" Through A Statement

"We will not allow you to make any more false promises in the name of Ram or any other Hindu god," he said.

The Shiv Sena will expose such 'jumlas' in Maharashtra, Thackeray said. The Sena chief demanded a discussion on the Ram temple and Hindutva issue in Parliament, saying this will reveal the stand of NDA partners and opposition parties.

Referring to recent seat-sharing pact finalised between the BJP, the JD (U) and the LJP in Bihar for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Thackeray said, "I congratulate BJP for joining hands with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who had given a slogan of RSS-free Bharat."  

"The way Shiv Sena has backed the Ram temple and

Hindutva issue, I want Nitish Kumar and Ram Vilas Paswan (LJP chief) to show similar political will," Thackeray said. He said his party has been "aggressively" taken up the issue of the Ram temple and Hindutva.

"I have taken up the issue with a purpose just before the general elections and I am not afraid of any consequences," he said.

The Sena chief said it has been 30 years since the Babri Masjid was razed, but the Ayodhya matter is still in court. Thackeray also referred to court's verdict in the Soharabuddin Shaikh fake encounter case in which all 22 accused, most of them policemen from Gujarat and Rajasthan were acquitted.

"The accused people in the Soharabuddin fake encounter case were acquitted but the Ayodhya court case is still going on. You are getting verdicts in cases of your convenience while others are left hanging," Thackeray said.

He said, "You just not only demolished the structure, but the violence that erupted in the aftermath helped you get into power. Now, you are sleeping like Kumbhakarn". Speaking about the Centre's proposal of allowing agencies to intercept information from computers, he said some people are saying it dates back to the UPA regime.

 READ: POLITICAL SCOOP: After Upendra Kushwaha Breaks Up With NDA, Two RLSP MPs All Set To Join Nitish Kumar's JD(U)

"If it is so, then why it is being discussed at all. Congress did it hence it lost the election. Congress was dethroned from power because it tried to do something like this. If you are also going to do it, then you will also impose emergency," he said.

Thackeray also raised the issues related to farmers and drought situation in Maharashtra.

"If farmers' get angry, I am not going to waste my time in negotiating seats with the BJP. I want farmers to get debt-free, I want the Ram temple to be built and beneficiaries should get due benefits of crop insurance scheme," he said.

He said he will personally visit arid regions of Maharashtra and talk to people affected by water scarcity. Thackeray indicated his unwillingness to enter into an alliance with the BJP for the upcoming polls.

"Why should I join hands in the name of Hindutva with someone (a reference to BJP) facing so many allegations of corruption, be it Rafale jet fighter deal or crop insurance scheme.

"What happened with the Rafale deal is happening in the crop insurance scheme also. In both the cases, companies having no experience were given the task to implement the programs," Thackeray claimed