Uddhav Thackeray dares BJP to pull down his government; attacks it for Bihar vax vow

Mumbai: Slamming former ally BJP, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said it was “wholly focused on bringing down” opposition-ruled state governments.
In his annual Dussehra rally, Thackeray said: “A lot of people are dreaming about this government collapsing, new dates are being given. If you have the guts, bring down the government. Instead of governing the country properly, BJP is wholly focused on bringing down governments. This will lead to anarchy in the country.”

The CM said: “The country would have been a better place had BJP spent time on governance.”

Uddhav also hit out at BJP for its poll promise of free vaccines in Bihar. “They are saying that they will give free vaccines in Bihar. Have you no sense of shame? Is the rest of the country in Kazakhstan, Bangladesh or Pakistan?”

WARNING NITISH KUMAR
In a politically loaded warning to Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, Thackeray said: “BJP is saying that whatever be the result, Nitish Kumar would be the next CM. They said the same about Kuldeep Bishnoi but then dumped him after the polls. The same trick is being played with Nitish.” He accused BJP of using LJP’s Chirag Paswan to cut down Kumar to size. “They did the same with us in 2014 and 2019 polls. They put up candidates against our nominees.”

GST ADVICE TO STATES
On GST, he said: “Why is the Centre taking loans and having us pay for it? Give us our GST dues. The Sena was opposed to this system. If GST dues cannot be given by the Centre, then I am asking the CMs of other states…to go back to the old formula (of taxation).”

On Mohan Bhagwat’s speech earlier in the day, the CM said: “Look at what the RSS chief is saying, you (BJP) attacked me for not opening up temples but the RSS chief is saying that just worshipping is not Hindutva. He has also said politics should not mean a war between rival parties.