State BJP chief Chandrakant Patil on Friday hit back at Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray for his tirade against the former ally, and alleged that the Sena had "negotiated" with then prime minister Indira Gandhi when she announced Emergency.
Speaking to reporters in Kolhapur, Patil criticized Thackeray over the latter's speech at the Shiv Sena's Dussehra rally.
"Thackeray targeted the RSS saying they were never part of the freedom struggle. I want to know where was Shiv Sena when it negotiated with then prime minister Indira Gandhi who imposed Emergency and sent several leaders, party workers and journalists behind bars. She tried to end the democracy," the BJP leader said.
"Thackeray also targeted the Union government but selectively forgot to mention that Maharashtra received lots of aid in the form of PPE kits, masks, vaccines and ventilators (after the coronavirus pandemic began)," Patil added.
While Thackeray patted himself on the back for announcing Rs 10,000 crore assistance for farmers hit by natural calamities, the previous Devendra Fadnavis-led government had given aid of Rs 20,400 per hectare for crops on non-irrigated land, Rs 54,000 per hectare for crops on irrigated land and Rs 75,000 per hectare for multi-year crops, Patil said.
Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council Pravin Darekar said, "I was expecting some development-related announcements from chief minister Thackeray. But he kept on expressing his displeasure about the Union government."
