Votes can be stolen, not people: Uddhav

Mumbai: ShivSena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday hailed students for their nationwide protests over the NEET paper leak, saying the agitation marked the beginning of a larger fight against the BJP and proved that “votes can be stolen, but not people”.

“Deshbhakt have defeated andhbhakt”, he said addressing a ‘Tiranga’ rally at Shivaji Park in Mumbai where a massive crowd of youth, mostly college students, waving the national flag and holding posters of the Constitution, gathered to “celebrate” the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

Despite light rains since morning, the youth in raincoats and under umbrellas carried posters of B R Ambedkar, the chief architect of India’s Constitution, along with creative social media memes that had gone viral during the nationwide protests by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP).

Since the police action on students in Delhi on July 22, protests were seen in different parts of Maharashtra, with Shivaji Park being the centre point of gatherings in Mumbai. During the rally on Sunday, Uddhav’s cousin and MNS chief Raj Thackeray led a one-minute silence at the venue in memory of 21 students who allegedly died by suicide following the NEET paper leak controversy in May.

Uddhav Thackeray said the youth had written “a golden chapter” in India’s democratic history through their unity and their agitation evolved into a nationwide movement. “People ask us why we are talking about elections when they are still three years away. The answer is simple. PM Modi has now realised that votes can be stolen, but not people,” he said. No election has been won today. “Patriots” (deshbhakt) have defeated “blind followers” (andhbhakt). This is the beginning of a bigger struggle. This is a fight between the BJP and India, the former Maharashtra chief minister asserted.

“I want to tell PM Modi that it is time to focus on the country. Your ministers are busy breaking political parties. Tell them to start working for the nation,” he said. Pradhan resigned on Saturday, following which the CJP called off its 36-day agitation that galvanised lakhs of people over irregularities in exams and the NEET paper leak. Uddhav Thackeray also asked why Pradhan had not been removed from the Union cabinet earlier. “I want to ask PM Modi – how painful was it to remove your favourite Dharmendra from the cabinet? Was that pain greater than what the families of the students suffered when their children took their own lives? I cannot forget that pain, and I will never forget it,” he said.