'Matter of survival for Shiv Sena in alliance'

Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray. Picture/Twitter Office of Uddhav Thackeray

In a blistering attack at Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray for favouring the CAA, Congress leader Nitin Raut on Wednesday said the support extended to the amended Citizenship act by Maha Vikas Aghadi leader was a 'matter of survival' for Shiv Sena in the tripartite alliance.

"Supporting CAA is a matter of survival for Shiv Sena. In Maharashtra, we are the government formed by three parties. Congress differs from Uddhav's statement. No such decision was taken by the MVA," said Raut maintaining that it was his personal view on Thackeray.

Being asked how it can be his personal view, the Maharashtra cabinet minister took a jibe at Thackeray and said: "He may be the Chief Minister but he is also the leader of the party, which he has to take care of."

On February 2, Sena supremo extended support to the CAA but said that he will not implement the proposed NRC in his state as it would cause inconvenience to not just Muslims but to Hindus as well."The CAA is not a law which throws anyone out of the country," he said in an interview with Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamana.

The CAA grants citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis, Buddhists and Christians fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh and who came to India on or before December 31, 2014.Protests have erupted in various parts of the country against the newly amended citizenship law and the proposed NRC.

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