India / Maha CM Uddhav Thackeray to give ₹1 crore to build Ram temple in Ayodhya

New Delhi: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray who reached the holy city of Ayodhya this morning announced that he will give Rs 1 crore for the construction of Ram Mandir. Thackeray is visiting the city for the first time after becoming chief minister to offer prayers on completing his 100 days in office.

“Today, I want to announce that not from the state government, but from my trust, I offer an amount of Rs. 1 crore (towards the building of Lord Ram’s temple),” he said.

Taking a dig at the BJP, Uddhav said that his party, which is currently in alliance with ideologically different Congress and NCP, had separated from its erstwhile ally ‘but not Hindutva’.

Asserting that BJP and Hindutva should never be compared, he said, “Main BJP se alag hua hun, Hindutva se nahi. BJP ka matlab Hindutva nahi hai – Hindutva alag hai, BJP alag hai (I have separated from the BJP, not Hindutva. BJP does not mean Hindutva – Hindutva is different, BJP is different.)”

Notably, the Maharashtra CM who is seeking blessings of Ram Lalla (Lord Ram) has been accompanied by wife Rashmi Thackeray and son and minister Aaditya Thackeray. Recollecting the contribution of his father Balasaheb Thackeray, Uddhav noted that he was forced to skip the ‘aarti’ programme following prayers in the wake of coronavirus.

He was scheduled to attend the evening ‘Aarti‘ on the banks of the Saryu river after offering prayers at the makeshift temple of Lord Ram. “The visit has been curtailed in the wake of the health advisories issued by the government”, Thackeray’s close aide and Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut told reporters.