'Thackeray govt has forgotten Hindutva': BJP slams Sena on 'delayed reopening' of temples

The BJP on Thursday attacked the Maharashtra government over the delayed re-opening of temples and blamed the Shiv Sena for 'forgetting Hindutva'. BJP MLA Ram Kadam claimed that though many people are happy about the re-opening of temples, there is also sadness. In addition, Kadam has also credited Sena's former ally BJP for the re-opening of temples. Kadam suggested that the Maharashtra government should have taken the decision earlier by putting some SOPs in place. 

"Thackeray government has forgotten its Hindutva. After 105 days, temples have been reopened. While there is happiness, there is some sadness as well that this government could not re-open the temples while they were re-opening bars and resturants a while back. Had they re-opened the temples with some SOPs in place back then, devotees would not have suffered. Due to the struggle of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) temples have re-opened now," Kadam said.

Religious places reopen in Maharashtra

The Maharashtra government on September 24 had announced that religious places in the state will be reopened on October 7, the first day of Navratri. As per the official statement, all religious places had to be reopened with strict adherence to COVID-19 protocols. Therefore on Thursday, religious places reopened after nearly six months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Devotees were seen visiting various temples and mosques in Mumbai and other places since early morning on Thursday. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray along with his wife Rashmi Thackeray and two sons Aaditya and Tejas visited the Mumba Devi temple on Thursday. The Chief Minister was also accompanied by Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar.

The CM said he prayed to Goddess Mumba Devi to eradicate the coronavirus completely. He said the trustees and priests of all places of worship should ensure that devotees follow discipline while offering prayers, and the shrine premises are cleaned and sanitised frequently and proper social distancing is followed.