Prime Minister Narendra Modi may have decided not to utter a word against BJP's former ally Shiv Sena as mark of respect for Balasaheb Thackeray, but the latter has chosen to take a dig at him over his national cleanliness drive – Swachcha Bharat Abhiyan.
Shiv Sainiks on Saturday and Sunday cleaned the Mahalaxmi Racecourse premises symbolically after the PM addressed a public gathering here. Reiterating need for maintaining cleanliness, the PM, who campaigned for party candidates in Beed, Aurangabad and Mumbai on Saturday, had appealed people to restore the rally venues to original status after the gatherings were over.
Advising Modi to take care of larger issues grappling the nation, the Sena said it was capable of handling the 'cleanliness' drive in Maharashtra.
"We conducted a cleanliness drive when Uddhavji held a rally here. We just don't talk about cleanliness. Being Shiv Sainiks, we toil for it. Lack of cleanliness may be a big issue in other states, but not in Maharashtra. The Shiv Sena is very much capable of handling the issues in the state. So, the PM doesn't need to pick a broom here. Rather he should focus on bigger issues," Kishori Pednekar, Shiv Sena corporator, from Worli assembly constituency, said.
Pednekar also ridiculed the BJP saying the Sena did not require to hire people for its gathering held at the racecourse on September 27.
Ashish Shelar, BJP's city unit chief, refuted the charges saying the youth wing of the NDA major had cleaned the racecourse area before and after PM's rally. "So, we don't know if any need arose afterwards to clean the venue. The PM has launched a cleanliness drive for the entire nation. If all the parties want to participate in it, we are happy for it," retorted Shelar.
Shelar added, "Also, we don't require bringing people on rent for our rallies. The world knows who needs to hire people. If the Shiv Sena too doesn't require hiring people for its rallies, then we are happy about it."
The Shiv Sena and BJP are at loggerheads after they ended 25-year old ties following failed talks over seat-sharing for the crucial polls. The BJP had been bullish on contesting more seats given its phenomenal performance during the Lok Sabha election held in April-May this year. On the other hand, the Shiv Sena wasn't ready to toe the line, resulting in the discord.
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