BJP to hold statewide protests against Maharashtra govt on Feb 25

The BJP has decided to hold protests against the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government led by Uddhav Thackeray in the state on February 25.

State BJP chief Chandrakant Patil on Monday said the party will hold demonstrations in all tehsils against the MVA government's "failure" to solve people's issues and its "opposition" to the Citizenship Amendment Act, the proposed National Register of Citizens and the National Population Register.

"The agitations will take place at nearly 400 places. It will be the second day of the Maharashtra government's budget session," Patil said. The budget session of the state Legislature will begin from February 24.

On BJP national president J P Nadda's remarks that the party needs to be ready to go solo in future elections, Patil said, "We have not change our strategy. We were saying that the MVA government will fall of its own burden and internal bickering."

During the state BJP's convention in Navi Mumbai on Sunday, Nadda said the Maharashtra government was "unnatural and unrealistic", He also said the BJP should be prepared to go solo in all the forthcoming polls and expressed confidence that his party will win the next Maharashtra elections on its own.

The BJP emerged as the single largest party in the state after the Assembly polls in October last year. But, it failed to form government after the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena snapped ties with it over the issue of sharing the chief ministerial post.

The Shiv Sena later forged an alliance with the ideologically different NCP and Congress to form the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government in the state.

Meanwhile, Patil said he does not approve of Marathi 'kirtankar' (preacher) Indurikar Maharaj's recent remarks, wherein the latter said that if intercourse with a woman is done on even date, a male child is born and if it is done on an odd date, a girl child is born.

Patil said Indurikar Maharaj is known for enlightening the society, but he should not have made such comments which were demeaning to women. However, since he has spoken a lot of good things, he should not be looked down upon for one statement, the BJP leader said.