Uddhav demands Bharat Rat for Savarkar

Mumbai, March 28: Shiv Se president Uddhav Thackeray on Monday demanded that the Centre confer the Bharat Rat, the country’s highest civilian honour, on Veer Savarkar and thus “shut up the Congress permanently” in the ongoing row over the revolutiory leader.

“The Congress has insulted not only Veer Savarkar, but all other revolutiories. Now the government must immediately announce Bharat Rat for Veer Savarkar and shut up the Congress permanently,” Thackeray said in a statement.

On the Bharatiya Jata Party’s demand that the Congress must apologise for its remarks on Savarkar, failing which the party would agitate outside the homes of all Congress legislators in Mumbai, Thackeray said this “drama” should be stopped once and for all by announcing Bharat Rat for the revolutiory. “There won’t be need for any agitation after that,” he said.

“The (rendra) Modi government must show guts and confer Bharat Rat on Veer Savarkar. In the past, the Shiv Se has agitated several times over insults to Veer Savarkar, thrown slippers at Mani Shankar Aiyar, stopped parliament.

“In the past, those who remained aloof from our agitation are now talking about agitating for Veer Savarkar. This is a good development, but, at least now, show some courage,” he said.

Thackeray’s statement came in the wake of a tweet by the Congress on March 23, hailing the 85th anniversary of martyrdom of the trio of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev and terming Veer Savarkar as a “traitor” which sparked a political storm. (IANS)