JALGAON: Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday claimed that a ‘Godhra-like incident’ can happen after the inauguration of the Ram Mandir temple in January 2024, the controversial remark by Shiv Sena UBT chief lead to condemnation by the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Addressing a public meeting in Jalgaon, Uddhav Thackeray said, “In the coming days, Ram Mandir will be inaugurated. There may be a possibility that many Hindus will be called from all over the country for the inauguration and after the ceremony is over, they can do something like the Godhra incident while the people return.”
Reacting to the remarks made by Uddhav Thackeray, BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad said that such remarks are shameful and the whole INDIA bloc can cross any limits to garner votes.
“All I would like to say is that this entire alliance is standing against PM Modi and can go to any limit for votes. I would like to pray to Lord Ram to give them some wisdom. This is a shameful and indecent remark. We condemn this,” Ravi Shankar Prasad said.
Maharashtra Minister Girish Mahajan said that Uddhav Thackeray is trying to create a sense of fear in the minds of the people.
“Uddhav Thackeray and Sanjay Raut have been giving statements on this for days. This is a baseless statement. Does he want clashes in society? He’s creating a sense of fear amongst people, senselessly. I doubt if he has to plan something similar. Police should pay attention towards him,” he said.
Around 58 people lost their lives when some coaches of Sabarmati Express were torched at the Godhra Railway Station in Gujarat on February 27, 2002. The incident triggered large-scale riots in Gujarat. A local court in 2011 convicted 31 accused and acquitted 63 people. Eleven accused were sentenced death penalty while the rest were awarded life imprisonment. (ANI)