Shiv Sena's latest jab at BJP: 'PM should auction more clothes to bring back black money'

‘With friends like these, who needs enemies?’ This is probably what BJP must be thinking about ally Shiv Sena right now. After making remarks against the Modi government following the party’s dismal performance in the Delhi polls and backing Nitish Kumar in the Bihar political crisis, Shiv Sena on Sunday took a dig at the auction of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘bandhgala’ suit, which was sold for Rs 4.31 crores on Saturday. [caption id=“attachment_2114443” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Uddhav Thackeray (left) with PM Narendra Modi (centre) and Amit Shah. Firstpost[/caption] “It is said the whole country was curious about the auction and there were news reports that several builders, industrialists and diamond merchants were competing to buy the suit. Modi wears new clothes every day and if some of those are auctioned, the black money (in the hands of some people) could be recovered and even the (BJP’s) assurance to recover black money could be fulfilled,” Shiv Sena said in its mouthpiece Saamana, according to Hindustan Times. The highest bid of Rs 4.31 crore for Modi’s ‘bandhgala’ suit was made by a Surat-based diamond trader, Laljibhai Tulsibhai Patel. There were a total of 47 bids for the suit, the collector said. The government raised about Rs 8.33 crore from the three-day auction of the items gifted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the money will be used to finance the Clean Ganga Mission, official sources said in Surat. Apart from the suit, two other items which went for more than Rs 1 crore were a replica of the Pashupatinath Mandir, which was gifted to Modi during his visit to Nepal, and a replica of the Statue of Liberty, which is a gift he received during his visit to the USA, Kumar said. Both the items received bids of Rs 1.11 crore each, he said. Congress had also taken potshots at Modi over putting his pinstripe monogrammed bandhgala suit on the block and said the auction was a “damage control” exercise and demanded that the process be stopped immediately and it be deposited with the ‘Toshakhana’. Shiv Sena has criticised BJP on various other occasions. Condemning the attack on communist leader Govind Pansare, the Shiv Sena had taunted the BJP-led government in Maharashtra over the “deteriorating” law and order situation. “Pansare was shot when Sun’s rays were illuminating Kolhapur. All this is happening in our own Maharashtra, despite a change in government,” an editorial in Saamana had said. “When (anti-superstition crusader) Narendra Dabholkar was killed, there was Congress government in the state. It was put in the convict’s box over the murder. Now who will take responsibility for this daylight attack,” the editorial had asked. On BJP supporting Manjhi in the Bihar political crisis, Shiv Sena had said, “Nobody should indulge in this sin of backing for political interest someone who has publicly said he accepts commission…Nitish Kumar has the backing of 130 legislators and yet he (Manjhi) is trying to get BJP support. BJP is pitting Manjhi against Nitish Kumar.” After the Delhi polls, Saamana had said, “(Prime Minister Narendra) Modi now lives in Delhi, but his ‘brahmastra’ failed to work at such close quarters, even (BJP chief) Amit Shah’s magic didn’t work…You can’t win elections with only promises and speeches. Modi’s popularity and Shah’s election strategies were at stake here, but a virtual non-entity like Kejriwal uprooted and threw them away. How was this possible?” (With inputs from PTI)