Uddhav will attend Sunday's 'Vajramuth' rally, says Raut; mocks BJP over plans to stop gathering

Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut said his party chief Uddhav Thackeray would be attending the Maha Vikas Aghadi’s ‘Vajramuth’ (iron fist) rally in Nagpur on Sunday and alleged hurdles were being set up by the ”government and others” to stop the gathering, which meant the Bharatiya Janata Party was afraid in its stronghold.

Nagpur is the headquarters of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and is the largest city of Vidarbha, one of the regions of Maharashtra where the BJP has been strong since the 1980s.

Raut, a key aide of former chief minister Thackeray, was speaking to reporters on Friday after reviewing preparations for the rally, which will also be addressed by leaders of MVA constituents Nationalist Congress Party and the Congress.

”The government and some other people are trying to stop the rally from taking place, despite it being held with all requisite permissions. If you (BJP) are trying to create hurdles to stop the rally, it means you are afraid on your home turf,” Raut said.

On being asked about Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s tour of Maharashtra, Raut said he did not have its details.

Uddhav Thackeray and Gandhi will meet for sure and Congress general secretary KC Venugopal will visit Matoshree, the residence of the Thackerays in Mumbai’s Bandra, on Monday to discuss on the same, Raut said.

Queried on state BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule’s admonition over statements against VD Savarkar, Raut said the ruling party needs to read and understand the late Hindutva ideologue’s thoughts and ideas.