Mumbai: Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray on Friday said he would quit as chief of the party he founded four decades ago, if Maharashtra Industries Minister Narayan Rane`s charge that the Sena was approached by 11 corporate houses
with an offer of Rs 500 crore to scuttle the Jaitapur Nuclear
Power project is proved.
"I will quit as Sena chief if the allegations are
proved," 83-year old Thackeray said in a statement released by
Sena mouthpiece `Saamana` here.
"If the allegations cannot be substantiated, Rane
should quit the ministry," he said.
The Sena chief also came down heavily on Chief
Minister Prithviraj Chavan over the latter`s tacit support to
Rane on the issue.
"Chavan is the most `brainless` and inefficient chief
minister so far," Thackeray said.
The Sena chief`s son and party executive president
Uddhav Thackeray also joined in, saying Chavan is the "weakest
CM so far and one who tells blatant lies."
Recently, Bal Thackeray had flayed Rane, saying "Was
Rane counting the money that the Sena was offered Rs 500 crore
to oppose the Jaitapur (nuclear) power plant?"
"People who know Rane, won`t find the allegations
surprising. The same person had alleged that some Congress
leaders had a connection with Pakistani terrorists after 26/11
Mumbai attacks," Thackeray had said in an editorial of the
party mouthpiece Saamna.
Rane had charged in the state Assembly that 11
corporate houses had approached a "particular political party"
so as to put spanner in the Jaitapur plant, fearing they would
have to lower power tariffs being supplied by them if the
project saw the light of the day.
"According to our information, that political party is
the Shiv Sena," Rane had said.
Uddhav Thackeray recently visited Jaitapur and met the
family members of Tavrez Sayekar who was killed in police
firing during the violent protests against the project.
PTI
