
Maharashtra minister Ashish Shelar likens attacks on non-Marathi speakers in Mumbai to Pahalgam massacre
'In Pahalgam, people were killed because of their religion. Here in Maharashtra, Hindus are being assaulted only because of the language they speak. What's the difference?' Shelar said at a press conference in Mumbai.
The remark comes amid heightened tensions following multiple incidents in Mumbai where workers of Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) attacked shopkeepers and migrant workers allegedly for speaking Hindi instead of Marathi.
The BJP leader also called the recent coming together of former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and his cousin Raj Thackeray an 'opportunistic alliance'.
'Uddhav cannot survive without power. He left the BJP when he didn't get the CM's chair and now seeks a BMC seat by any means necessary,' he alleged.
Shelar said the BJP would protect the interests of both Marathi speakers and Hindus but would do so through 'development politics, not hatred'.
The Pahalgam massacre claimed 26 lives on April 22.
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India.com
22 minutes ago
- India.com
Thackeray Reunion Puts BJP, Shinde Camp On Edge; Congress Watches In Silence
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The Print
22 minutes ago
- The Print
Even the Right loves Asaduddin Owaisi post-Op Sindoor. Why ‘secular' camp won't embrace him yet
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Other RJD leaders have been rather blunt, calling Owaisi's party the 'BJP's B team'. In a state where Muslims constitute 17 per cent of the population and for a party that relies so heavily on the Muslim-Yadav combination (together constituting around 32 per cent), RJD leaders' snub to Owaisi came a bit too soon. After all, the AIMIM won five of the 20 seats it contested in the last Assembly election. And the crossover by four AIMIM MLAs to the RJD doesn't make Owaisi's party irrelevant; he is the vote-getter. So, what explains the RJD's snub to the AIMIM? The Congress and the Left—other constituents of the mahagathbandhan—are looking the other way. Secular camp leaders argue that Owaisi has lost his steam and appeal, as is evident from the AIMIM's dismal electoral performance in recent times. They are convinced that Muslims are again rallying behind the principal party or alliance that challenges the BJP in different states. They also believe that their charge of Owaisi being the BJP's B-team has stuck. His vocal support to the Narendra Modi-led government post-Pahalgam terror attack and even joining a delegation of MPs to defend the Modi government's Operation Sindoor abroad further deepened the impression, some of the 'secular' camp leaders told me. Now, that's a shocker. For a long time, these 'secular' leaders didn't want to be seen with the firebrand Muslim leader because they thought it would help the BJP polarise the Hindus. Now that even the Right ecosystem is almost falling in love with Owaisi for his unequivocal denunciation of ('kamine, kutte, haraamzade') terrorists from Pakistan and his vocal support for the Modi government's retaliatory action and diplomatic offensive, why is the secular, anti-BJP camp not ready to embrace him? Asaduddin Owaisi is as secular as anyone in the so-called secular camp. Just that his commitment to secularism goes beyond votes. 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Owaisi decided to become the voice of the collective, foiling the plans of Pakistani handlers of Pahalgam terrorists and also pouring cold water on the hopes of communal elements back home. It was a very sensible move. He might have ended up disappointing many in the far-Right ecosystem for the missed opportunity. That should make Asaduddin Owaisi a bigger asset for the secular camp. But they are not ready to embrace him yet. Not because they still think that the BJP will use his name to polarise the Hindus. But because they find it a good opportunity to finish a competitor for Muslim votes for good. They believe that his support for the Modi government—even over terrorism—will alienate the Muslims from him. Owaisi must prove them wrong in Bihar polls—if only to break the stereotype of the Muslim. DK Singh is Political Editor at ThePrint. He tweets @dksingh73. Views are personal. (Edited by Theres Sudeep)


Time of India
25 minutes ago
- Time of India
Indira Gandhi attacked Golden Temple in collaboration with the British, claims BJP MP Nishikant Dubey
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