At Thane conclave, Raj Thackeray backs Amit over Pune portrait row

Raj Thackeray used an MNS conclave in Thane on Sunday to defend his son Amit Thackeray in the dispute over a portrait of Prime Minister Narendra Modi removed from an educational institute in Pune.

The MNS chief said Modi’s photograph could be displayed in government offices, but should be placed separately from portraits of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Babasaheb Ambedkar and Mahatma Jyotiba Phule. “No one’s picture can be put in the same line” as those leaders, he said.

The BJP had staged a protest over the removal of Modi’s portrait and rebuked Amit Thackeray after he said it could not be placed next to Shivaji Maharaj’s image.

At the Thane gathering, Raj Thackeray also criticised the BJP, saying public attention was being diverted from what he described as more pressing issues. He warned that riots could break out during the upcoming Ganeshotsav and appealed to Hindus and Muslims to remain alert.

He further alleged that efforts were being made to create divisions between Marathi and non-Marathi people, and made a series of claims on unemployment, businesses leaving India and electoral rolls in Kalyan rural.