‘Will PM Modi visit Manipur now’: Uddhav Thackeray on RSS chief's remark

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday took on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over RSS chief Mohan Bhagwant’s statement on the situation in strife-torn Manipur, and raised concerns over the recent terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir.

“Will Prime Minister Modi visit Manipur after the RSS chief’s remarks?” Thackeray, an ally-turned-rival of the ruling BJP, said at a press conference in Mumbai.

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Bhagwat, at an event on Monday in Nagpur, where the RSS is headquartered, brought up Manipur, where ethnic clashes have been taking place between the Meitei and Kuki communities, since May last year. The BJP governments at the Centre and state have been criticised by the opposition for failing to stop the violence, and PM Modi for his ‘silence’ on the issue and not visiting the state since the conflict broke out.

On the terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir – there have been three attacks since the BJP-led NDA government was sworn-in for its third consecutive term on Sunday evening, including one even as the oath-taking ceremony was underway – former Maharashtra chief minister Thackeray sought to know what the point of abrogating Article 370 was. The legislation, which granted special status to the region, was revoked on August 5, 2019, less than two months after PM Modi was elected to serve his second successive term.

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“Lives are being lost. Who is responsible for the terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir?” Thackeray asked.

“I am concerned about the future of the country and not about the future of the NDA government,” he added.

Unlike its previous two terms, when the BJP enjoyed a majority of its own, the party-led Union government, in its third term, is in power with support from its allies in the NDA.

(With PTI inputs)