Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis.
In an event held in Pune, a new ruckus has arisen in the politics of Maharashtra about the slogan of Jai Gujarat by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, where the Congress and Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray faction) described it as an insult to Maharashtra and Marathi Asmita, while Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has openly come under Shinde's defense.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis defended Eknath Shinde and said that this slogan is not a symbol of showing more or less love of any state or language, but it was said in honor of the spirit of the program and the community.
Fadnavis said, just because Shinde said Jai Gujarat, it means that he has less love than Maharashtra and more than Gujarat. This is a sign of narrow mindset, and Marathi does not suit Manush.
Remembering 'Jai Karnataka' to Sharad Pawar
Fadnavis also attacked the opposition and said that the opposition has no concrete issue left now. He said, the opposition is now cut off from the public. They do not even know what is in the public's mind. Therefore, they are raising such issues, which have nothing to do with the public. The Chief Minister also gave an old example of Sharad Pawar, former Union Minister and head of Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction). He reminded that when Pawar gave a speech on the occasion of the unveiling of the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Chikodi, Karnataka, he also gave the slogan of Jai Maharashtra, Jai Karnataka from the stage.
Fadnavis raised the question, does this mean that Sharad Pawar loves more than Karnataka and less than Maharashtra? It's not like that. We express respect according to the spirit of the people of the state where we go. He clarified that all political leaders go to different parts of the country and respect the language, culture and people there. It is a symbol of India's diversity and unity, not the examination of loyalty towards any field.
Fadnavis said, we are first Indians. When any leader gives a speech among a particular community or people of the state, he respects the cultural spirit there. It is absolutely inappropriate to connect it to Marathi Asmita.
Shinde's slogan caused a fierce battle
In fact, Shinde said at the end of his speech in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah at the inauguration program of Jayaraj Sports and Convention Center in Pune, Jai Hind, Jai Maharashtra, Jai Gujarat. Since a large number of people from Gujarati community were present in the program and Amit Shah himself is from Gujarat, Shinde raised this slogan.
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But this statement has now become the cause of political dispute. Congress leader Nana Patole called it an insult to Marathi Asmita and said, we strongly condemn it. It is an insult to the motherland and Marathi language of Maharashtra. Such can not be expected from the Deputy Chief Minister of the state.
At the same time, senior leader of Shiv Sena (Uddhav faction) Sanjay Raut made a scathing attack while sharing a video of Shinde's speech on social media platform X. He wrote in a sarcasm, Shaha Sena, Shaha Sena! -Shinde, who was directly accused of working at the BJP's behest.
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