Raut likens Modi to Aurangzeb; BJP says people will give befitting reply

Buldhana: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Wednesday likened Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, inviting a sharp retort from the BJP which said the people of the country will give a befitting reply to such attacks on the PM.

Addressing a rally in Buldhana in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, Raut said while Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the founder of Maratha empire, was born in Maharashtra, Aurangzeb was born in present-day Gujarat.

"There is a place called Dahod (in Gujarat) where Modi was born, Aurangzeb was also born there. So this Aurangzebi attitude is marching towards Maharashtra from Gujarat and Delhi, and also against the Shiv Sena and our self-respect. Don't say Modi has come, say Aurangzeb has arrived. We will bury them," Raut said.

Hitting back, BJP spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sudhanshu Trivedi said the Shiv Sena (UBT) has stood with those who have eulogised Aurangzeb and referred to Shivaji Maharaj's raid on Surat as "loot of Surat".

"The people of the country will respond to all such attacks in an effective way," Trivedi said in New Delhi.

He asserted the more opposition parties show hatred towards Prime Minister Modi, the more people will shower love on him and help the BJP-led NDA cross the figure of 400 seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.