Ashish Shelar Questions Uddhav Thackeray: Was Opposing Nanar Refinery Helping Pakistan?

While leveling a serious allegation against Shiv Sena (UBT) Chief Uddhav Thackeray, Mumbai BJP Chief Shish Shelar has questioned whether UBT's opposition to the Nanar refinery was inadvertently aiding Pakistan. Shelar raised this concern in light of reports suggesting Pakistan's efforts to secure the largest refinery project in the country.

Shelar expressed his query on Twitter, stating, "Uddhav Thackeray needs to answer the people of Konkan as to what are the gains of anti-refinery agitation, in light of the news that Saudi Aramco will be shifting the project to Gwadar in Pakistan."

According to reports, Saudi Aramco, the principal partner in the greenfield refinery project, has chosen Gwadar in Pakistan for the venture. There have been indications that Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have signed an MOU for this significant project worth 10 billion USD.

Shelar pointedly asked, "What does this mean? Does this imply that those who opposed the project at Nanar and Barsu over the past six years have caused losses worth billions of rupees to Konkan, Maharashtra, and India? Were there international powers involved in the anti-Nanar stir, working to prevent the project from being realized in India? Did the opponents of the project cooperate with these international powers in their efforts to hinder the project? And as a consequence, did the opposition to the Nanar project inadvertently benefit Pakistan?"

The project was initially proposed at Nanar in Sindhudurg district but was later shifted to Barsu in Ratnagiri district due to strong opposition from Shiv Sena. Uddhav Thackeray, supporting the villagers, had spoken against the project and criticized PM Modi for offering what he considered a hazardous refinery project, despite promises of more significant developmental ventures.

Thackeray had questioned the government's preference for Gujarat, wondering why projects like Vedanta-Foxcon or Tata Airbus were not being brought to their region. He raised concerns about the environmental impact and displacement of people, asserting that those who voice such concerns are often unfairly labeled as anti-development.