The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Friday said the BJP has no face in Maharashtra and is therefore forced to bring in Prime Minister Narendra Modi for an extensive campaign in the poll-bound state.
"The BJP has no face in Maharashtra, so they are bringing in Modi," he said in an exclusive interview.
On the Shiv Sena breaking up with the BJP after 25 years in Maharashtra, the MNS chief said that his cousin Uddhav Thackeray should have realised that the BJP can never be trusted.
The BJP cannot be trusted. I have always said that. They say something and do something else. Uddhav should have understood it earlier that the party doesn't want to remain in the alliance," Raj said.
Speaking out on his call to Uddhav, which the Shiv Sena chief admitted in an interview earlier, Raj said that he will speak about it later. "I had kept quiet about Uddhav's call to me and what we spoke. When I will return to Mumbai, I will speak in a rally about it now that Uddhav has brought it in public through your interview," he said.
The two estranged cousins, who have not been seen publicly since the death of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, have recently spoken to each other. The two leaders have however denied any reconciliation so far.
The MNS chief also took a dig at Modi for frequently holding public meetings. "How will Modi perform his prime ministerial duties if he has to campaign in every assembly election. Look at what is going to happen in the next few days. He is campaigning and addressing rallies. How will the government function?" Thackeray said.
The MNS chief also attacked Modi's claims of development in Gujarat, saying it could not have been done without the help of the government at the Centre.
"How can BJP say that its government in Maharashtra will make Modi strong? When they performed well in Gujarat, there was a Congress government at the centre. I am sure the central government helped them," he said.
"Why have a national party government in a state. National parties should concentrate on the centre," Thackeray said, making a strong pitch for his MNS, a regional party in Maharashtra with strong following in urban areas.
And then, in his trademark style of pushing a controversial envelope, Raj said, "Maharashtra needs autonomy. We can handle our own internal railways, education and other things. We don't need Centre for that."
Railways are a national subject with state governments having no control over it while education is on the concurrent list, with both the Centre and the state authorised to legislate over it.
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