Amit Shah's scathing attack on Uddhav Thackeray: 'He is heading Aurangzeb fan club'

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday launched a scathing attack on NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray. He dubbed Pawar as the leader of corruption in the country. Addressing the BJP's state convention in Pune, the Home Minister called Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray the head of the Aurangzeb fan club who was sitting with people who sought clemency for 1993 Mumbai serial blasts convict Yakub Memon. 

Even as the saffron party suffered a setback in the Lok Sabha elections, Shah said the BJP-led Mahayuti will do better in the Maharashtra assembly polls than what the party did in 2014 and 2019. "Sharad Pawar institutionalized corruption," the BJP's master strategist said in Pune. 

Attacking the Shiv Sena (UBT) chief, Shah said, "Uddhav Thackeray is sitting with those who sought clemency for 1993 Mumbai serial blasts convict Yakub Memon." 

"Who is the Aurangzeb fan club?" he asked the party workers before proceeding to answer himself. "Those who serve biryani to (26/11 terror attack convict) Kasab, those who seek clemency for Yakub Memon, those who give (controversial Islamic preacher) Zakir Naik a messenger of peace award and those who support the (banned Islamist outfit) PFI. Uddhav Thackeray should be ashamed of sitting with these people." 

Praising BJP workers, Shah said they should not be upset by the results of Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra, adding that they could revive themselves in the state polls by taking the good work and welfare schemes of the government to the masses. 

"Every BJP worker from Maharashtra has made efforts in the party's victory. The BJP-led alliance will perform better in ensuing Maharashtra assembly polls than it did in 2019 and 2014. We will work harder and set new goals for ourselves. The saffron must rise again in Maharashtra," Shah asserted. 

The Home Minister praised Pune as the city of Bal Gangadhar Tilak and the land that gave the country the slogan "Swaraj is my birthright and I shall have it".  

Asserting that the people of India gave Prime Minister Narendra Modi their stamp of approval in recent Lok Sabha elections, Shah said the arrogance of Rahul Gandhi will be crushed after "we win forthcoming assembly polls in Maharashtra, Jharkhand, and Haryana". 

Maharashtra, Jharkhand, and Haryana will go to polls later this year.