New Delhi: After months of accusations and counter-allegations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray attended two programs together in Mumbai on Tuesday. CM Thackeray received Prime Minister Modi at the Naval Heliport INS Shikara in Colaba. From there Prime Minister and the Chief Minister went to the Raj Bhavan for the first program, where they shared the stage together.
PM Modi inaugurated the Jal Bhushan Bhawan and the Gallery of Revolutionaries at the Raj Bhavan. He also addressed participants at the 200th-anniversary celebrations of 'Mumbai Samachar' at Bandra Kurla Complex. The Prime Minister and the Chief Minister visited Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), where they attended another program together.
This was PM Modi's first meeting with Uddhav Thackeray amid the ongoing hostility between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), which recently intensified over the Hanuman Chalisa controversy. Significantly, on April 25, the Shiv Sena supremo did not attend an event in Mumbai, where the Prime Minister was honored with the Lata Mangeshkar Award.
Prior to that, on March 6, when the prime minister visited Pune to inaugurate Pune Metro, Thackeray remained away. The Sena had said the CM couldn't attend the function as he was recovering from surgery.
Before that, Modi and Thackeray were seen together, for a couple of seconds, during the last rites of legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar at Shivaji Park in the city on February 6.
Ahead of the Raj Bhavan program, PM Modi on Tuesday inaugurated the temple at the Sant Tukaram Maharaj temple in Dehu, near Pune. This temple is dedicated to the 17th-century saint. PM Modi also interacted with 'Warkaris' during his visit to the temple. The tour is taking place in view of the annual 'Wari' tradition starting from June 20 in Dehu. A special Tukaram turban was also presented to the Prime Minister on this occasion.