Mumbai: After a close aide of Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray welcomed the destruction of the Babri mosque and a newspaper ad related to it, the Samajwadi Party declared on Saturday that it will leave the opposition MVA in Maharashtra.
Maharashtra SP unit chief Abu Azmi said, "An advertisement was published by Shiv Sena (UBT) congratulating those responsible for demolishing the Babri masjid. His (Uddhav Thackeray's) aide also posted on X applauding the demolition."
"We are quitting the MVA. I am speaking to (Samajwadi Party president) Akhilesh Singh Yadav," Azmi told PTI.
Sena (UBT) MLC Milind Narvekar's post about the destruction of the Babri Mosque prompted the Samajwadi Party to quit from MVA.
Narvekar posted a picture of the demolition along with a statement from Bal Thackeray, the founder of the Shiv Sena, on the 32nd anniversary of the incident: "I am proud of those who did this." Images of Narvekar, Aaditya Thackeray, and Uddhav Thackeray were also included in the post, TNIE reported.
"If anyone in the MVA speaks such language, what is the difference between the BJP and them? Why should we stay with them?" Azmi asked.
He claimed that the mosque had been destroyed and that no one had been held accountable, adding that although people had forgotten about it, the wounds were being reopened.
"The Congress has to decide whether it can ally with someone who speaks like this," he told reporters.
Abu Azmi later wrote on X, "Samajwadi Party can never remain with a communal ideology, hence we separate ourselves from Maha Vikas Aghadi."
SP MLA Rais Shaikh also took to X to condemn the post he wrote, "This is to remind you that the Shiv Sena (UBT) party enjoyed enormous support from secular votes in the last two elections—Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha. The glorification of the dark day in India's history is uncalled for and unwarranted. I strongly condemn such glorification.”
In the Maharashtra Assembly, the Samajwadi Party has two MLAs. State President Abu Asim Azmi and Rais Shaikh took their oaths today in spite of the MVA parties' refusal to attend the ceremony.
Senior Congress leader Nitin Raut responded to a question regarding the Samajwadi party's decision to leave the MVA, "Abu Azmi has made a statement (of quitting the MVA). We will discuss with the Samajwadi Party about its decision and understand what the problem is."
"It is unlikely to hurt the MVA directly because the SP has very limited presence in the state.”
Bhaskar Jadhav, the leader of the Shiv Sena (UBT), retaliated by saying that his party's position on the Babri Masjid hasn't changed since 1992. After 31 years, he questioned whether the Samajwadi Party had now realised the UBT's viewpoint.
According to PTI, Jadhav further charged that the SP was siding with the ruling coalition. Azmi added that during the Maharashtra assembly elections, there was no coordination with parties such as the Samajwadi Party.
The SP contested eight seats, winning two and having a friendly contest for the remaining six. The Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, and Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) make up the majority of the MVA's opposition, of which the Samajwadi Party was a part.
The Akhilesh Yadav-led party's action also reflects disagreements at the national level within the INDIA alliance, which includes the MVA.
On Friday, West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee expressed discontent with the functioning of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance, indicating her intention to take over the bloc if given the opportunity, following the Congress's defeat in assembly elections in Haryana and Maharashtra.