Mumbai, Jul 26 (IANS): Expressing serious concerns over the ongoing violence and atrocities against women in Manipur, former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray raised questions addressing the President of India, Droupadi Murmu and the state Governor, Anasuiya Uikey, here on Wednesday.
"Another incident of a woman being stripped naked and paraded has just come to light… Such incidents had happened even earlier. Unfortunately, it was not taken seriously then. These matters were taken cognizance only after the videos came to light and there may have been many more such instances," said Thackeray.
"The country has a President who is a lady, and Manipur has a woman Governor, but how does it help," he wondered.
"I request Madam President, that you are a woman, so what role will you play on the goings-on in the country? We call our country Bharatmata. If that mother is being insulted and such a spectacle is being made, then what are you doing as a woman, Madam President?" the Shiv Sena (UBT) President urged.
Thackeray posed the same questions to Manipur Governor Uikey who had herself admitted that she had never witnessed such violent incidents in her entire life, even as the issue is currently hotting up before Parliament.
"So, you have just been watching… This savagery has been going on for three months now… What is your role…?” demanded Thackeray, adding that the woman who tortured and brutalised was the wife of a Kargil war hero, making it even more tragic.
He rued that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not ready to speak on Manipur and it was only after the Supreme Court orders that he spoke for some 36 seconds before starting the campaign for Rajasthan elections.
The ex-CM cautioned that Manipur is a part of India, but there are apprehensions now that it will break, even the 'double-engine' government is shattered as both engines have failed, referring to the BJP at the Centre and in Manipur.
Taking a swipe at the Bharatiya Janata Party, Thackeray asked, "why is the government not sending the ED or CBI to Manipur, as these central agencies have a reputation 'to do anything’, control governments or even topple elected regimes…
Thackeray's sharp comments came in his annual marathon multi-media interview on the eve of his 62nd birthday on Thursday given to Saamana Group Executive Editor Sanjay Raut, MP, the first installment of which was published on Wednesday.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) supremo reiterated his warning that given the Manipur burning scenario, 'democracy will not survive' if the BJP returns to power in 2024, and elections may never be held in the country again, even as elections are still pending in Jammu & Kashmir for the past six years.
He accused Modi and Amit Shah of being responsible for the state of affairs as everything is being in their names, whether misuse of government machinery, central agencies or breaking parties and toppling governments -- clear signs that democracy is in peril.
"However, I feel that 2024 will be a turning point in India's history. The people of the country will rise up and save democracy. The common man should not think and vote… Because he/she is not just casting his vote, but handing over his entire life in their hands… They (BJP) have been ruling for 10 years, meaning one generation has moved forward. The people must now become wiser for the future generations,” appealed Thackeray.
To a question by Raut on whether the sensibilities of modern day leaders are dead, he cited an example of how it was always said that a "politician’s skin is thicker than a rhinoceros."
"But, nowadays, the politicians have become too much thick-skinned… Perhaps, the rhinoceros must be telling her cubs that their skins are like that of a human politician!" smiled Thackeray.