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Shinde’s remarks came after the Maharashtra assembly passed a unanimous resolution congratulating him for receiving the ’Adya Jagatguru Shri Sant Tukaram Maharaj Puraskar’
Maharashtra Deputy CM Eknath Shinde (Image: PTI)
Amid the ongoing controversy over comedian Kunal Kamra’s comments, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday said he had followed the Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray’s principle of “80 per cent social work and 20 per cent politics” in his career and pledged to continue working for the common man.
Shinde’s remarks came after the Maharashtra assembly passed a unanimous resolution congratulating him for receiving the ’Adya Jagatguru Shri Sant Tukaram Maharaj Puraskar’, a prestigious award from the Warkari (devotees of Lord Vitthal) community, earlier this month.
The resolution came amid the ongoing row over stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra’s alleged defamatory remarks against Shinde. While Shinde has not yet responded to the controversy, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has demanded an apology from Kamra for “insulting” his deputy.
In his reply to the resolution congratulating him for getting the award instituted in the name of Sant Tukaram, Shinde said the award belongs to the state’s people and he dedicates it to them.
“In my 40-year-long career, I have followed Balasaheb Thackeray’s principle of 80 per cent social work and 20 per cent politics and pledged to continue working for the common man,” the deputy CM said.
“It is due to the work I did as chief minister the state gave a landslide victory (to the Mahayuti comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP). We will continue to work for the people. Our responsibility has increased, “Shinde said, adding, “I consider myself as a ‘common man’.”
“We have to make the common man in the state a superman and improve the people’s lives,” he said. The deputy CM further stated that the government and the opposition should work together for the people.
The resolution was moved by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandrakant Patil, who praised Shinde’s political journey and legislative work.
Kunal Kamra Row
A major row erupted on Sunday night after Kunal Kamra shared a video clip from his show at the Habitat Studio at the Unicontinental hotel in Mumbai’s Khar area in which he can be heard referring Shinde as a “traitor” and went on to sing a parody of him.
The stand-up comedian used a modified version of a Hindi song from the movie ’Dil Toh Pagal Hai’ to describe the 2022 rebellion of Shinde against Uddhav Thackeray.
Several Shiv Sena workers on Sunday night gathered outside Hotel Unicontinental, where the studio is located. They allegedly ransacked the studio and the hotel premises, the police said.
The Mumbai police has also registered an FIR against Kamra for making defamatory remarks against Shinde, officials said.
(With agency inputs)