Uddhav Thackeray Seeks Answers on Mystery Surrounding Gopinath Munde’s Death

MUMBAI, SEP 17: Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday questioned when the mystery surrounding the death of former Union minister and BJP leader Gopinath Munde would be resolved, while clarifying that he was not levelling allegations against anyone.

Addressing a press conference during his tour of the Marathwada region, Thackeray said questions had been raised about Munde’s death following the road accident in New Delhi in June 2014, shortly after he took oath as a Union minister.

“At that time, there was suspicion and discussion about how our man had died. Initially, there was a lot of discussion, but the issue subsequently went quiet. I feel that the reason behind his death and the mystery surrounding it have still not been resolved. I am not making allegations against anyone,” Thackeray said.

He added that his own suspicion could be wrong and stressed that he was seeking answers rather than accusing anyone.

Thackeray also referred to recent doubts surrounding the accident involving Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, saying that such questions should be investigated.

Recalling Munde’s contribution to Maharashtra politics, Thackeray said the late BJP leaders Gopinath Munde and Pramod Mahajan had played an important role in strengthening the BJP’s presence in the state and in bringing the BJP and Shiv Sena closer.

He expressed regret that Munde, despite taking oath as a Union minister, could not attend Parliament even once before his death.

“Maharashtra had a leader from Marathwada who could have delivered justice to the state, but he could not even enter the House,” Thackeray said.

Earlier, during his Marathwada tour, Thackeray had alleged that there had been an attempt to leave the region without a strong political leader and had referred to Munde’s death in that context. Asked to elaborate, he reiterated that he was seeking answers and not directly accusing anyone.

Thackeray also criticised the Maharashtra government over the drought situation, questioning its preparedness and asking why measures similar to those taken by the Karnataka government had not been implemented.

“You are the rulers of the state. Did you have no information about the situation? Why did you not make preparations like the Karnataka government?” he asked.