‘Power jihad’, ‘descendant’ of Abdali: Uddhav hits out at BJP in its own language

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray has decided to pay back the BJP in its own coin, terming its habit of breaking political parties to form a government as “power jihad” and dubbing Union Home Minister Amit Shah as “a political descendant of Ahmad Shah Abdali” for his “Aurangzeb Fan Club” barb directed at Thackeray. Abdali was an Afghan king who defeated the Marathas in the third battle of Panipat.

Addressing party workers at the Shiv Sankalp rally in Pune on Saturday (August 3), Thackeray also accused the Eknath Shinde-led dispensation of bribing voters by giving “revdis” (freebies) to them in the form of schemes such as the Mukhyamantri Ladki Bahin Yojana, under which eligible women in the state will get Rs 1,500 every month.

“Power jihad”

Accusing former ally BJP of breaking parties, he said, “If Muslims are with us after we explained to them our Hindutva, then we are (according to the BJP) the Aurangzeb Fan Club. Then, what you are doing is power jihad.” The right wing often coins phrases combining a word with “jihad” to denote how Muslims are, according to it, doing some wrong. An example is “love jihad”.

During an event in Pune last month, Shah had attacked Thackeray and dubbed him “the head of the Aurangzeb fan club” who was “sitting with people who sought pardon for 1993 Mumbai serial blasts convict Yakub Memon”.

“Bed bugs”

Referring to his remarks, Thackeray, who had challenged his friend-turned-adversary and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis that “either you will be there or I will (in politics)”, said he was not referring to any person.

“Some people thought I challenged someone, but I don’t challenge bed bugs. Here, ‘I’ means my cultured Maharashtra and ‘you’ means the party which loots Maharashtra,” the former chief minister said.

Bed bugs are not supposed to be challenged, but crushed, he said.

“Leakage government”

Attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi over photos of leakage in the new Parliament building, Thackeray said the new complex has started leaking in just 14 months. The PM asks what the Congress did in 60–70 years, but Modi should give an account of why the new Parliament building, which was built barely a year ago, started leaking, he said.

“This government (at the Centre) is a leakage government. There are paper leaks also,” he said.

“Not Shivaji’s Hindutva”

Thackeray also accused the BJP of engineering division among castes.

“This is not the Hindutva taught to us by Chhatrapati Shivaji. This (the one practised by the BJP) must have been taught by Aurangzeb, which we do not believe in. Our Hindutva is the one that takes forward the Maharashtra dharma of Chhatrapati Shivaji,” he said.

Dig at judiciary

Taking a dig at the delay in getting the judgement on the disqualification of MLAs who rebelled against him, Thackeray said, “We have faith in the judiciary. The result will be given in 5–50 years. The term of (the legislative Assembly) is getting over. Even if they (the rebel MLAs) are disqualified, they can contest polls.”

Thackeray added that democracy was getting murdered in broad daylight and stressed that justice would be delivered in the court of the people.

“Khadde Purush”

Talking about the pothole-riddled roads during the monsoon, he hit out at Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari.

“Potholes are everywhere, including in Mumbai, Pune and other cities. Gadkari once said he would build roads that will have no potholes even after 200 years. But looking at the condition of roads, Gadkari should be given the ‘Khadde Purush (man of potholes) award’. The Mumbai-Goa Highway is still under construction,” Thackeray added.

(With agency inputs)