Sena refuses to put end to anti-BJP rants

Mumbai: Even as state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders are trying to woo the Shiv Sena ahead of the elections next year, the Uddhav Thackeray-led party continues to be hostile towards its alliance partner.

Continuing his aggressive posture, Mr Thackeray Thursday dared the BJP to admit that the promise of building the Ram temple in Ayodhya was a “jumla” (false promise).  The Sena chief claimed that the BJP would go down from 270 seats in the Lok Sabha (LS) to two if it did so.  

Addressing Sena workers at Mahad in Raigad district, Mr Thackeray said that the bricks collected for the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, were in reality not for the temple but for the BJP to reclaim power in the upcoming polls.

“The bricks that were collected for the Ram Mandir were in reality not for the temple but to take you (the BJP) to power. Say once that (the construction of) the Ram temple was a jumla and you will be reduced to two seats from 270 (in the Lok Sabha),” the Sena president said.