Pune: “Raj Thackeray Targets Those Who Get Him Noticed” – Sharad Pawar

Pune, 17th July 2024: Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) Chief Raj Thackeray took to X (formerly Twitter) today to greet all Warkaris and Lord Vitthala devotees on the occasion of Ashadhi Ekadashi. He also wrote that his wish is for the communalism that has grown in Maharashtra over the past decade to end.

Raj Thackeray stated that due to caste politics, Maharashtra has become unstable. It was alleged that Raj Thackeray had targeted Sharad Pawar, and replies to his tweet increased this speculation. Sharad Pawar reacted to this a few hours ago in Pune.

Raj Thackeray has often criticised the former Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Sharad Govindrao Pawar. He has frequently alleged that Sharad Pawar was the one who started communalism based on caste politics. Due to these past instances, many speculated that this tweet also targeted Pawar. Sharad Pawar addressed this during an interaction with the media in Pune.

Sharad Pawar said, “This statement from Raj Thackeray is nothing new. He always speaks like this. That’s his specialty. Every 8-10 days, a month, or 2 months, he makes such comments when he wakes up. Raj Thackeray comments on those people to whom, if he commented, people would notice.”

Raj Thackeray’s Tweet:

In a detailed post on X, Raj Thackeray wrote, “Happy Ashadhi Ekadashi to all. Lakhs of devotees have been going to Pandharpur without fail for the last 8 centuries. I think it will be the only tradition of such length in the world. It is not that there is nothing like wari in our tradition. ‘Yatra’ is an integral part of our Hindu tradition. But be it the Chardham Yatra or the Kashi Yatra, all those are the last stages of life… they also happen once. But this is not the case with Wari. Every year, one has to travel hundreds of miles on foot, in the sun, and the rain, enduring the hardships that come along. Warkaris leave with Dindi from their village. While leaving, they should leave with the belief that Saint Dnyaneshwar, Saint Tukaram, and many other saints are with them. They go forward accepting whatever comes their way and, without asking anything from Vitthal, return with the strength to believe and accept what is going to happen throughout the year as Vitthal’s will.”

He continued, “Since this is a god who likes to meet his devotees, this god has been loved by the people of all castes and the grassroots of Maharashtra for many centuries. After coming to the feet of Vitthal in Pandharpur, where the self-conceitance of a person also falls, how can the consciousness of caste survive? So I always believe that Maharashtra is truly blessed by Vitthal. But, unfortunately, in the last one to one and a half decades, the poison of communalism has taken root so deeply in Maharashtra that the question arises: is this the same Maharashtra?”

Thackeray concluded by saying, “But when even 7- and 8-year-old boys and girls talk about communalism, it is scary. The Marathi society that survived the Mughal invasion and did not lose its essence, the Marathi society that survived the British policy of ‘divide and rule,’ and the society that stood stubbornly to build a great nation after independence, has suddenly been influenced by the dream of power and money of a handful of people. It is disheartening to see it falling apart. That’s why today I am praying at the feet of Vitthal to destroy this poison of caste which is spreading in Maharashtra. And let a united Sahyadri rise once again to the defence of the Himalayas. Once again, Happy Ashadhi Ekadashi from Maharashtra Navnirman Sena!”