Those helping BJP are Maharashtra's 'enemies', polls all about love vs betrayal of state: Uddhav
Kolhapur, Nov 5: Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday hit the campaign trail and pitched the November 20 assembly polls as a battle between those who love Maharashtra and the ones who betray it as he reflected on the 2022 split in the party.
Thackeray hit out at his former ally BJP and its partners, saying those helping the national party are "enemies" of Maharashtra as he made a slew of promises to voters, including building a temple of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in every district if the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi comes to power.
Addressing his first rally of the 2024 assembly polls in Radhanagri in Kolhapur district -- the constituency of Prakash Abitkar, one of the 40 Shiv Sena MLAs who rebelled against his leadership -- he said those who love the state are aligned with the opposition MVA which comprises the Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and NCP (SP).
Those helping the BJP, a constituent of the ruling Mahayuti bloc, are "enemies" of Maharashtra, Thackeray remarked.
Further attacking his one-time ally, the former CM accused the BJP of "selling" Maharashtra to Gujarat, where it is in power.
Thackeray claimed his government was toppled in June 2022 because he did not allow the BJP to harm Maharashtra and said not a single industrial project moved out of the state when the MVA was in office under his leadership.
"(Maharashtra assembly poll) is a fight between those who love the state and the ones who betray it," Thackeray told the gathering.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) president started his speech with the sentence 'Jamlelya Majhya Tamam Maharashtra Premi Bandhavanu, Matanu ani Baghinino' (My Maharashtra loving brothers, mothers and sisters), seeking to position the electoral battle as a fight between "the ones who love the state and those who work against it".
In his campaign speeches during the Lok Sabha polls in April-May, he would start his address with the sentence 'My Maharashtra loving brothers, mothers and sisters'. It was contrary to his regular Hindutva-rooted 'My Hindu brothers, mothers and sisters' opening remarks at rallies, perhaps reflecting his alignment with the Congress and the NCP (SP) which project themselves as "secular".
Referring to petitions filed by his party in the Supreme Court seeking disqualifications of rebel Sena MLAs, Thackeray emphasised he has still not got justice from the top judiciary and hence has come to people's court for justice.
"I am not fighting for myself, but for you and Maharashtra," the former CM insisted.
He accused the BJP of trying to divide people on the basis of religion and castes for the sake of power.
Attacking the state's Eknath Shinde-led dispensation, which assumed office after the fall of the MVA administration, Thackeray alleged the government works on "commission".
Talking about the Mahayuti government's flagship scheme for poor women, Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana, Thackeray said police were not even ready to register the complaint of the mother of the girl who was allegedly sexually assaulted at a school in Badlapur in Thane district in August.
He said while the government is implementing the Ladki Bahin Yojana, under which underprivileged women are provided a monthly stipend of Rs 1,500, the inflation is spiralling, making essential commodities costly for common citizens.
Thackeray promised that if the MVA comes to power, every district in Maharashtra will have a temple of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
The former CM said if possible, he will also build a temple dedicated to the 17th century Maratha warrior king in Surat in present-day Gujarat, a city linked to Shivaji Maharaj's military campaign.
He assured that after the MVA comes to power, rates of essential food items like rice, pulses, oil and sugar will be stabilized.
Thackeray said currently education for female students is free in the state, but a MVA government will extend this benefit to male pupils, too.
The former chief minister said all-female police stations will be established in the state with an aim to provide a safe and accessible environment for women to file complaints and seek redressal of their grievances.
He reiterated that the multi-crore Dharavi Redevelopment Project in Mumbai, being executed by the Adani Group, will be scrapped if the MVA comes to power.
Thackeray also assured payment of minimum support price (MSP) to farmers for their crops under a MVA dispensation.
Polling for the 288-member assembly will take place on November 20 and votes will be counted three days later. In all, 4,140 candidates are in the fray across the state.
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WR suspends TTE after he makes passenger write apology letter for asking him to speak in Marathi
Mumbai, Nov 5: The Western Railway has suspended a train ticket examiner (TTE) for allegedly making a passenger write an apology after the latter asked him to speak in Marathi, an official said on Tuesday.
The action came after a photograph of the apology letter surfaced on social media, and passengers staged a protest, he said.
Talking to PTI, Vineet Abhishek, chief public relations officer of Western Railway, said an inquiry is ordered into the incident that took place at Nallasopara station on November 3, and TTE Rakesh Mourya has been suspended.
"All passengers, regardless of their religion, language, or region, are equal to us. Providing excellent service to them is our goal. The matter will be investigated thoroughly, and necessary action will be taken," he said.
Around 70 to 80 passengers staged a protest at Nallasopara station after the purported apology letter surfaced on social media on Monday, officials said.
According to officials, the TTE asked the passenger, Amit Patil, and his wife to furnish their local train tickets. The couple asked him to speak to them in Marathi as they did not understand Hindi, and an argument ensued.
The TTE took the couple to the office of the Railway Protection Force, where Patil claimed that the official had threatened them and made him write an apology, they said.
The Western Railway, in its statement, affirmed its commitment to respecting all languages and passengers.
"Western Railway respects all languages spoken across the country and values the diversity of our passengers, standing firm on unity in diversity," it stated.
