Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday questioned Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray’s proposed “Ram Raksha Andolan”, asking whether Thackeray knew the “Ram Raksha” stotra and understood its meaning.“He is organising a ‘Ram Raksha Andolan,’ but does he actually have any knowledge about ‘Ram Raksha’? I will certainly join his movement and recite the ‘Ram Raksha’ [stotra] as well, but my question remains: what kind of unique movement is this, led by someone who does not even know ‘Ram Raksha’ or understand what it entails?” Fadnavis said, as cited by ANI. Earlier this month, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray criticised BJP over the alleged Ram Temple donation embezzlement case, accusing the party of using the issue for political purposes and announcing a statewide “Ram Raksha Andolan” from July 5.Thackeray had held a meeting with Shiv Sena (UBT) MLAs and MLCs at his residence, Matoshri, in Mumbai’s Bandra area.He told those attending the meeting that the agitation should be expanded to the district level, including cities such as Nagpur, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Ratnagiri.The alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram temple came to light on June 7. An FIR was registered on June 25 based on a preliminary report submitted by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the Uttar Pradesh government.Eight people associated with the temple’s donation-counting process have been arrested so far, and the investigation is underway. The case has led to a political confrontation in Uttar Pradesh, with the ruling BJP and Opposition parties accusing each other over the handling of the temple’s finances as the SIT probe continues.
