Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari's many faux pas
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari's many faux pas
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has again found himself alone in his corner after an inadvertent comment caused political furor in the state.
Recently, after the naming ceremony of a chowk in western Mumbai’s Andheri, Koshyari lauded the Gujarati and Rajasthani communities for the state’s development and said if they were taken out of Maharashtra, the state will have no money left.
"If Gujaratis and Rajasthanis are removed from Maharashtra, especially Mumbai and Thane, no money would be left here. Mumbai would not be able to remain the financial capital of the country," Koshyari said.
#WATCH | If Gujaratis and Rajasthanis are removed from Maharashtra, especially Mumbai and Thane, no money would be left here. Mumbai would not be able to remain the financial capital of the country: Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari pic.twitter.com/l3SlOFMc0v
— ANI (@ANI) July 30, 2022
Several Shiv Sena and Congress leaders were quick on taking up arms against the governor.
"I do not want to insult someone sitting on the post of Governor. I respect the chair but Bhagat Singh Koshyari insulted Marathis and there is anger among the people. The Governor is trying to divide the society on religion, he is crossing every limit,” former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray said.
This is not the first time Koshyari has found himself mired in controversy, let’s take a look when the senior leader made a political faux pas:
Koshyari on Chhatrapati Shivaji
In February this year, Koshyari found himself in the eye of the storm after he made a statement regarding Chhatrapati Shivaji, who is revered across the state of Maharashtra.
"Many maharajas and chakravartis (emperors) have been born in this land, but who would have cared for Chandragupta if not for Chanakya? Who would have asked about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj had there not been Samarth Ramdas," said Koshyari, implying that Chhatrapati Shivaji was a disciple of Samarth Ramdas.
Several politicians from Maharashtra, including BJP MP Udayanraje Bhosale, deplored Koshyari's remarks, with NCP questioning the historical veracity of such assertion and the Congress blaming Modi government's representatives for "insulting" the pride of Maharashtrian people and their revered king.
Bhosale, who is the direct descendant of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, said the comments made by Koshyari had hurt the sentiments of the Maratha warrior king's followers and the entire Maharashtra.
Koshyari on Savitribai Phule
Days later, the Governor made another comment that landed him in controversy.
On 3 March this year, during the inauguration of a statue of Savitribai Phule in Pune, he made comments on the social pioneer and her husband, Jyotiba Phule.
“Savitribai was married off when she was 10 years old. And her husband Jyotirao was 13. Now imagine, what would the boy and girl have been doing after marriage? What would they have been thinking?” Koshyari had said.
The state Congress had condemned his comments in a tweet: “What gestures, what laughter. Disgusting essence. Speaking about Krantijyoti Savitribai Phule, Koshyari’s speech shows the distorted mentality of the Sangh. It is unfortunate for Maharashtra to have a Governor who does not know where, when and what to say!”
With inputs from agencies
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