New Delhi: Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on Saturday stirred fresh controversy after he said that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was an icon of "olden days" and he referred to B R Ambedkar and Union minister Nitin Gadkari as "new ones". The governor's remark on the Maratha warrior did not go down well with the NCP and Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction, which said Koshyari has "insulted" the Maratha king and the state.
Addressing a function at Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University in Aurangabad on Saturday, Koshyari said, "Earlier, when you would be asked who is your icon — Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhas Chandra Bose and Mahatma Gandhi used to be the answers. In Maharashtra, you need not look elsewhere (as) there are so many icons here. While Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is of olden time, there are Ambedkar and Nitin Gadkari," the governor said, according to news agency PTI.
Reacting to the governor's remark, the Sharad Pawar-led party accused him of demeaning Maharashtra.
Koshyari has also equated Union Minister Gadkari with Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the party's chief spokesman Clyde Crasto said.
"The President of India must seriously think of changing this person (Koshyari) holding a constitutional position, who constantly makes statements that create controversy. The BJP is always silent about his demeaning statements that hurt the sentiments of Maharashtrians,' Crasto said, as per PTI.
Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut questioned how Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj can be an old role model when the state and the country follow his ideals even today and will continue to do so.
Raut demanded that the BJP, which is protesting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's remarks against V D Savarkar, spell out its stand on Koshyari's "insult" of Shivaji Maharaj and Maharashtra.
(With agency inputs)