On Wednesday, ahead of a ‘Gaurav Yatra’ in support of one of greatest freedom fighters, Veer Savarkar, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis and other leaders of Shiv Sena-BJP alliance uploaded Veer Savarkar’s images as their social media display pictures and cover pictures.
The leaders changed their social media profile pictures to the image of Veer Savarkar and shared them on social media. By doing so, they extended support to the ‘Savarkar Gaurav Yatra’ which is slated to begin from March 30 across Maharashtra.
Other BJP and Shiv Sena leaders have also changed their profile pictures.
According to BJP state president Chandrashekar Bawankule, the ‘Savarkar Gaurav Yatra’ will be held by the BJP and the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena (SS) all through Maharashtra from March 30 to April 6. According to the BJP official, the Yatra’s purpose is to inform young people about Veer Savarkar’s role to the independence movement and to counter Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s repeated insults against him. The Yatra will pass through each of the state’s 288 Assembly constituencies.
“The Yatra will conclude on April 6, the Foundation Day of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and I will participate in this Yatra. At least two big cities/towns in each Assembly constituency will be selected for the Yatra,” Bawankule said yesterday. He added that over one crore citizens will participate in the Yatra.
BJP state president meanwhile also lashed out at the Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray. He said, “Congress repeatedly insulted the Veer Savarkar who played a major role in the India’s freedom struggle. Thackeray calmly tolerated the repeated insults of freedom fighter Savarkar by the Congress to maintain the Maha Vikas Aghadi government. Uddhav Thackeray abandoned the idea of Hindutva to retain power,” he said urging Thackeray to end alliance with the Congress.
The Yatra organizers have been chosen by the BJP. Amit Satam will oversee the Mumbai leg of the Yatra, while Vikrant Patil and Sanjay Upadhyay have been appointed regional coordinators for Mumbai. It is believed that around 10 million people will participate in the Yatra, which will be held in at least two key towns of every constituency.
Recently, Veer Savarkar’s grandson had threatened legal actions against Rahul Gandhi if he would not stop insulting the freedom fighter. Rahul Gandhi has been incessantly mocking and insulting Savarkar over the years.