Uddhav skipping Maha Kumbh: He is scared of calling himself Hindu, says Dy CM Shinde
Mumbai, Feb 27 (PTI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday took a dig at Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray for not attending the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh and said the latter was scared of calling himself a Hindu.
Considered among the holiest pilgrimages by Hindus, the Maha Kumbh started on January 13 and concluded on February 26. The Maha Kumbh 2025 saw a record 66 crore devotees thronging the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati.
"Those who skipped Maha Kumbh should be asked why they skipped it. They keep saying they are Hindus. Bal Thackeray proudly gave the slogan 'garv se kaho hum Hindu hain (proclaim it proudly that we are Hindu) but now they are scared of calling themselves a Hindu and call (Bal Thackeray) Hinduhriday Samrat," Shinde told reporters without naming Uddhav Thackeray.
Shinde was responding to a question on Thackeray and the Gandhi family of the Congress not attending the mega congregation.
The Deputy CM also said the issue connected to the post of guardian ministers would be resolved soon.
The issues in Mahayuti have been addressed amicably and with coordination, he asserted.
After naming Girish Mahajan (BJP) and Aditi Tatkare (NCP) as guardian ministers of Nashik and Raigad, respectively, the state government put the order on hold as Shiv Sena staked claim over the two posts.
Meanwhile, Suhas Minchekar, a former MLA who was associated with Shiv Sena (UBT), joined the Shinde-led Shiv Sena during the day.
Minchekar, who hails from the Kolhapur, is the third former MLA associated with Shiv Sena (UBT) to have joined Shinde in less than a fortnight.
On February 15, former Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Rajan Salvi joined the Shinde-led Sena. Salvi, a three-term MLA from Rajapur, lost to Shiv Sena's Kiran Samant in the November assembly polls.
This month former MLA Subhash Bane also joined the Shiv Sena. Bane was an MLA of the undivided Shiv Sena but had rebelled along with Narayan Rane and unsuccessfully contested a bypoll as a Congress candidate. He later rejoined the undivided Shiv Sena.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) has been witnessing a series of desertions since its rout in the Maharashtra assembly polls.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
