MUMBAI: Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who is also the home minister, has defended the controversial pro-Hindutva activist Sambhaji alias Manohar Bhide, saying he does good work for Hindutva and connects the Bahujan youth to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj-related forts.
The Congress alleged that Bhide works for the RSS-BJP and that is why he has not been arrested despite controversial statements from him against Mahatma Phule, Mahatma Gandhi, Nehru and Sai Baba. He has also passed misogynistic remarks earlier, the party alleged.
Bhide earlier in his speech claimed Mahatma Gandhi’s father was a Muslim and that Sai Baba was not a Hindu god. Fadnavis informed the state assembly that one of the objectionable speeches of Bhide went viral on social media. The police registered cases against Bhide and two of his associates. “Whoever speaks against our national icons will face action,” Fadnavis said.