Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut criticized the BJP for claiming “Hindutva victory” (file)
Mumbai:
Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut criticized the BJP for calling for the reopening of places of worship in Maharashtra, closed since March due to the Covid shutdown, as a “victory for Hindutva”. Mr. Raut said that the decision to close the places of worship was made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the interest of public health, and has no relevance to Hindutva.
“The closure was imposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and he too made the decision to close the temples. There is no reason for the BJP to take credit for the Hindutva victory as the decision was made in the middle of the Covid pandemic, “said Sena. the leader told reporters this morning.
Mr. Raut was responding to questions about comments made by BJP MLA Ram Kadam, who was quoted by the ANI news agency as stating that the Uddhav Thackeray government “had only made this decision (to reopen places of worship) after a immense pressure “from the opposition party.
On Saturday, Uddhav Thackeray’s government confirmed that places of worship across the state could reopen starting Monday, provided Covid-prescribed security measures are followed. Cabinet Minister Jayant Patil said it was the “right time” to do so and stressed that the use of masks and hand sanitizers was mandatory, as was social distancing.
Places of worship were allowed to reopen for the first time in June (per the “Unblocking1” guidelines posted by the center). However, this was conditional on state governments agreeing to do so.
At the time, however, Maharashtra had more than 90,000 confirmed cases of Covid and those numbers were growing rapidly every day, with the state struggling to contain the spread.
Thackeray has frequently made that point when faced with this lawsuit; last week he said, again, that he had delayed the reopening of places of worship due to the risk to older people.
Maharashtra’s ruler Shiv Sena and opposition BJP (one-time allies until the spectacular aftermath of last year’s Assembly elections) have clashed repeatedly over this issue. Last month triggered a scathing dispute between the Chief Minister and Governor BS Koshyari early last month.
The governor, in a letter full of sarcasm, described Mr. Thackeray as a “staunch devotee of Hindutva” and then asked him if he had “become a secular”. The Chief Minister replied that his Hindutva did not require a certificate of authenticity and that the government would make a decision after “careful consideration”.
Maharashtra is the state hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic, with nearly 17.45 lakh cases. Of these, almost 46,000 are deaths linked to the virus and around 86,000 are active cases.
With contributions from ANI
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