Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray expressed his views stating that although people are happy about the consecration of the new Ram temple in Ayodhya, it does not mean that they are going to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) solely based on the temple issue in the upcoming Lok Sabha election. According to news agency PTI, the MNS leader during a press conference said, "No one can predict the result (of Lok Sabha polls). Let the elections happen. People are happy with the Ram temple, but it does not mean they will vote for the BJP."


He appeared non-committal on whether the MNS will be contesting the Lok Sabha elections which are slated to happen in a few months.


Thackeray also responded to a question about whether his party will join the state's opposition bloc saying, “Who wants to go with the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA)?"


Regarding the Maratha reservation issue, the MNS chief acknowledged that all demands of the community were addressed, except for the quota demand.


Thackeray disclosed plans to meet Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde to discuss toll plaza data collected by his party.


According to PTI, he said, "Toll is collected across the globe. I am not against toll collection, but there should be transparency in transactions. If the money goes to the government's coffer, it is right, as money is needed to run the administration. But if it goes to toll collectors or a political party, it's wrong".


Shiv Sena (UBT) President Uddhav Thackeray hit out at the BJP on December 30, 2023, saying the party was making Ayodhya's Ram Temple inauguration a "political event". He said, “I don't need one to visit Ayodhya as Ram Lalla belongs to everyone. Whenever I feel like it, I will go. Shiv Sena had contributed a lot to the Ram temple movement.” 


“I only expect that political event shouldn't be made out of it (the consecration ceremony). Lord Ram is not the property of any single party. This is the matter of faith for crores of people,” PTI quoted Thackeray as saying.


Subscribe And Follow ABP Live On Telegram: https://t.me/officialabplive