Maha Vikas Aghadi government won't last long as it lacks unity, predicts Raj Thackeray

MUMBAI: The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government of Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress will not last long as there is lack of unity among the ruling allies, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray said on Friday.

“I can’t see this government surviving for a long time. it is not my wish that it should fall. But the government, in which there is no unity (among the ruling partners) and who don’t consult each other, will not survive for a long time,” Thackeray said.

The MNS chief also found faults in the state government's handling of the COVID-19 situation in Maharashtra. "It is important to help people come out of this fear. The restrictions imposed by the state government, news on TV channels and messages on WhatsApp have all led to a kind of chaos. You need to make people feel relaxed," Thackeray added.

He made the remarks while speaking at an event organised by a Marathi news channel. When asked about his cousin Uddhav Thackeray’s performance as a CM, the MNS chief said he had seen the Shiv Sena president “only on TV”. “I could not see his work in the last four-and-a-half to five months,” he added.

He also said that the ‘bhoomi pujan’ ceremony of the proposed Ram temple in Ayodhya, scheduled to be held on August 5, was not required amid the COVID-19 pandemic and could be organised later when things normalise.

He also rejected Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s suggestion for “e-bhoomi pujan” and said the ground-breaking ceremony should be held with great fervour. The MNS chief said, “The bhoomi pujan is not required at this time as people are in a different mindset right now. It could have been held after two months when things normalise. People would have enjoyed the ceremony then.”