Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India]: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray strongly criticized Union Home Minister Amit Shah over his remarks on BR Ambedkar during a session of Parliament, calling it an “insult” to the architect of the Constitution.
Speaking on Wednesday, Thackeray said, “How Amit Shah spoke in the Parliament yesterday, he displayed insolence. He said that taking Ambedkar’s name has become a fashion and that had they taken God’s name as much, they would have been in heaven. Who are you? Ambedkar ji is a personality not bound by any side… How BJP is insulting someone who gave us the Constitution is not acceptable to us.”
Thackeray also called on BJP allies, including the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Janata Dal (United) (JDU), and Ramdas Athawale, to clarify their stance. “Will BJP and RSS take action against Amit Shah? Or did they tell Amit to say this?… Is this acceptable to other parties that have extended support to Amit Shah, be it Chandrababu Naidu, Nitish Kumar, or Ajit Pawar? Will Ramdas Athawale continue to be in their cabinet even after this?” he questioned.
He further demanded clarity from the RSS and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Will the Prime Minister take action against him, or did the PM tell him to say that? RSS should make it clear if this was Amit Shah’s personal view or if they told him to say that,” Thackeray added.
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, also joined the criticism, accusing the BJP of being against Ambedkar’s ideology. “This is against the Constitution. They were saying from the beginning that they would change the Constitution. They are against Ambedkar ji and his ideology. Their only work is to finish the Constitution and the work done by Ambedkar ji. The entire country knows this,” Gandhi said.
Earlier in the day, PM Modi defended Amit Shah’s remarks and accused Congress of hypocrisy in its approach to Ambedkar’s legacy. In a series of posts on X, Modi alleged that Congress, despite being in power for decades, had failed to empower Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities.
If the Congress and its rotten ecosystem think their malicious lies can hide their misdeeds of several years, especially their insult towards Dr. Ambedkar, they are gravely mistaken!
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 18, 2024
The people of India have seen time and again how one Party, led by one dynasty, has indulged in…
“In Parliament, Amit Shah Ji exposed the Congress’ dark history of insulting Dr Ambedkar and ignoring the SC/ST Communities. They are clearly stung and stunned by the facts he presented, which is why they are now indulging in theatrics! Sadly, for them, people know the truth! Congress can try as they want, but they can’t deny that the worst massacres against SC/ST Communities have happened under their regimes. For years, they sat in power but did nothing substantive to empower the SC and ST communities,” Modi said.
He listed what he called the “sins” of Congress towards Ambedkar. “The list of the Congress’ sins towards Dr Ambedkar includes getting him defeated in elections not once but twice. Pandit Nehru campaigning against him and making his loss a prestige issue. Denying him a Bharat Ratna. Denying his portrait, a place of pride in Parliament’s Central Hall,” Modi claimed.
The political discourse over Ambedkar’s legacy continues to be a point of contention, reflecting deeper ideological divides between parties in India.