Mumbai: Sanjay Raut, the Shiv Sena Member of Rajya Sabha, is livid with Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath. And for a good reason: the Yogi has compared the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Taking affront, Raut accused the BJP of playing politics on Shivaji. During a release of book, ‘Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Aur Musalman,’ at Mumbai Marathi Patrakar Sangh on Wednesday, Raut said, the characteristics of Shivaji were contrary to that being projected by the ruling BJP government. “Shivaji had never indulged in politics of riots,” he asserted. The book is authored by senior journalist Saeed Hameed.
Yogi, while addressing a gathering of Kurki Patel community on September 20 at Lukhnow, had said, “Modiji ne yahan par jis prakar ki awashyakta hai us prakar ki ranniti apnayi…jaise Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj ne apanayi thi. Rashtra bhakti kaisi honi chahiye Congress ko is bare main Modiji se seekhna chahiye… (Modiji adopted strategies as per the situation, this reminds one of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj who was the first to do so. The Congress should take lessons on ‘rashtra’ bhakti from Modi ji…).” Raut also seems to have taken a cue from the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangha chief Mohan Bhagwat and suddenly heaped praise on Muslims for their role in the freedom movement of India. “Even Chhatrapati Shivaji had given key positions in his army to members of the community,’’ said Raut.
The opposition however did not spare Raut, the Sena or the RSS, accusing them of being opportunists. Nawab Malik, spokesperson of Nationalist Congress Party, said, “After the RSS gave a new meaning of ‘Hindu Rashtra,’ by including the Muslims, Raut has gone a step ahead by taking a secular position in favour of Muslims.” Malik said Sena now has to show its readiness to distance itself from the RSS and the BJP if they are true followers of Shivaji. “Sena has to distance itself from the ideology of Veer Savarkar, who had criticised the ideology of Shivaji Maharaj. Will they do that? Sena can sail only in one boat at a time.”
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