BJP picked Ritu Tawde as Mumbai mayor due to Marathi backing for Sena (UBT) and MNS: Raut
Mumbai (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday claimed the BJP was forced to choose a Marathi mayor for Mumbai due to the overwhelming support of Marathi people to his party and the MNS in the BMC polls.
Speaking to reporters, Raut also took a dig at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh after actor Salman Khan was seen interacting with its chief Mohan Bhagwat here on Saturday at an event to mark the RSS's centenary.
"Was it a welcome for Bollywood star Salman Khan or (a message that) Muslims are also welcome in the Sangh and its shakhas?" the Rajya Sabha member asked.
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Bhagwat should have clarified about it because of the way Hindu-Muslim hatred and vindictive propaganda is being spread and the Sangh is also part of it, he charged.
On the BJP fielding Ritu Tawde (53) for the Mumbai mayor's post, Raut said she is originally from the Congress. The BJP does not have anything original of its own, he claimed.
"The way Marathi people overwhelmingly voted for the Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS, the BJP had to make a Marathi mayor in Mumbai," he stated.
Tawde is all set to become Mumbai's mayor and the party's first in four decades after Sena (UBT) decided against fielding a challenger, making the contest unopposed and ending the Thackeray family’s 25-year dominance over the richest civic body.
The Mumbai mayoral election is scheduled for February 11, which is the last day to withdraw the nominations.
The Sena (UBT) had raised the emotive "Marathi identity" plank in last month's Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections, where the party had allied with MNS. The BJP emerged as the single largest party in the 227-member BMC by bagging 89 seats, while its ally Shiv Sena won 29 seats.
In the Opposition camp, the Sena (UBT) secured 65 seats, while its allies, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and the Nationalist Congress Party (SP) won six and one seat, respectively.
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Trump says EU has until July 4 to approve last year's trade deal or it will face higher tariffs
Washington (AP): President Donald Trump has said in a social media post that goods from the European Union would face higher tariff rates if the 27-member bloc fails to approve last year's trade framework by July 4.
The announcement on Thursday appeared to be a deadline extension after the president said last Friday that EU autos would face a higher 25 per cent tariff starting this week. Trump made the updated announcement after what he described as a "great call" with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Still, the US president was displeased that the European Parliament had yet to finalize the trade arrangement reached last year, which was further complicated in February by the US Supreme Court ruling that Trump lacked the legal authority to declare an economic emergency to impose the initial tariffs used to pressure the EU into talks.
"A promise was made that the EU would deliver their side of the Deal and, as per Agreement, cut their Tariffs to ZERO!" Trump posted. "I agreed to give her until our Country's 250th Birthday or, unfortunately, their Tariffs would immediately jump to much higher levels."
It was unclear from the post whether Trump was implying that the tariff rates would jump on all EU goods or the increase would only apply to autos.
His latest statement indicates he might be backing away from his earlier threat on EU autos by giving the European Parliament several more weeks to approve the agreement.
Under the original terms of the framework, the US would charge a 15 per cent tax on most goods imported from the EU.
But since the Supreme Court ruling, the administration has levied a 10 per cent tariff while investigating trade imbalances and national security issues, aiming to put in new tariffs to make up for lost revenues.
