BJP's Shelar slams Shiv Sena (UBT) for opposing India-Pakistan Asia Cup match

Mumbai: Maharashtra Minister Ashish Shelar on Friday hit out at the Shiv Sena (UBT) for opposing India's match against Pakistan in the Asia Cup cricket tournament, saying international sporting events cannot be dictated by bilateral political stand-offs.

Talking to reporters, the state cultural affairs minister accused Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut of adopting an "anti-India" position on the issue.

"Our stand has always been clear that the Indian cricket team will not undertake a tour of Pakistan and vice versa. However, we cannot restrict our team from playing or participating in an international tournament. What sort of stand is this? It is not an appropriate stand," Shelar said.

Raut had on Thursday said that the Sena (UBT) will hold "Sindoor Rakhsa" campaign on September 14 to protest against India playing Pakistan in Abu Dhabi that day as part of the Asia Cup tournament.

Playing cricket with Pakistan amounts to "betrayal", he said.

Criticising Raut's stand, Shelar pointed out that Pakistani cricketer Javed Miandad was once invited to the residence of late Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray.

"Those who oppose India's participation now should remember that Balasaheb had hosted Miandad at his own home," he remarked.

The BJP minister further condemned a purported video showing some people offering milk to a poster of Mughal ruler Aurangzeb.

"We will not only condemn such acts but oppose them. Shiv Sena (UBT) and its allies maintain a selective silence because of their political equations with the Congress. They are vocal against renaming a metro station after Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj but have kept mum about the glorification of Aurangzeb," he alleged.

On the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, Shelar said the BJP, along with allies Shiv Sena and the NCP, would jointly contest and appoint the mayor.

"We will fight as one and win," he asserted.

He also took a swipe at the opposition's INDIA bloc, claiming they could not reconcile with electoral defeats.

On speculation that members of the INDIA bloc had cross-voted for NDA candidate C P Radhakrishnan in the vice-presidential polls, Shelar said, "I want to thank Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar for helping us get more votes than his actual Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha strength. I will not comment publicly on it." Shelar also dismissed "conflict of interest" allegations levelled against Union Minister Nitin Gadkari as part of "paid campaigns".

The Congress had last week alleged that Gadkari has been "aggressively lobbying" for ethanol production, while his two sons are involved in firms that produce ethanol and "benefited" from government policy.

Shelar said, "There is not a single blot on the personal or public life of Gadkari and his family. People whose business interests are affected try to malign the image of such leaders. I strongly suspect that urban naxals are behind it."

He added that the BJP government would never back down on decisions taken in the public interest, including its push for eco-friendly ethanol-blended fuel.

"The country supports the policy for eco-friendly fuel. Poor people and environmental activists have backed it," he asserted.