Shiv Sena’s ‘Hindutva’ is clean, says Aaditya Thackeray on his Ayodhya visit

‘My visit to holy city is devotional, not political,’ says Sena leader

Remarking that the Shiv Sena’s Hindutva was ‘clean’ and that the party never broke electoral promises, Maharashtra Minister and Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray on Wednesday said that his Ayodhya visit was not political but a purely devotional one.

“This is not a political visit or a tour to secure electoral benefits, but a purely devotional one. We have come here to seek the blessings of Lord Ram. Enthusiastic Shiv Sainiks from Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and other parts of the country have come to take the darshan of Ram Lalla,” said Mr. Thackeray, speaking to presspersons during his first solo visit to Ayodhya today.

Making a veiled jibe at the BJP, he said that the Shiv Sena’s Hindutva is ‘clean’ and that the party’s politics was simple.

“We have always kept our electoral promises, regardless of whether we won or lost elections,” Mr. Thackeray said.

Parrying questions of a political nature, Mr. Thackeray refuted suggestions that the massive presence of Shiv Sena workers along with their top leadership was a show of strength.

“There is no show of strength here as this is not a political event. For us [Shiv Sena], shakti (strength) and bhakti (devotion) is the same. Ayodhya is the centre of faith in India. In 2018, the Shiv Sena had given the slogan of pehle mandir, phir Sarkar (first temple, then government). After the Sena’s slogan, the way for the construction of the Ram temple was cleared and it is being built on the orders of the Supreme Court,” said Mr. Thackeray, tacitly implying his party’s contribution in the Temple movement and ‘Hindutva’ politics.

Mr. Thackeray further said that Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray would be speaking with his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanath to ask for a space in Ayodhya in order to build a ‘Maharashtra Sadan’ to provide accommodation for devotees visiting the holy city from Maharashtra.