Maharashtra NAVNIRMAN SENA (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray raised questions about the cleanliness of the Ganges on Sunday and said he would never soak in the river.
Thackeray addressed the workers and leaders of the MNS at the event held on the 19th Foundation Day in Pimpri-Chinchwad, saying that his party leader Bala Nandgaonkar recently brought holy water from Maha Kumbh, recently in Prayagraj, but he refused to drink it.
“We organized a party meeting in Mumbai. Some people didn’t participate in the competition, and 5-6 of them went to Maha Kumbh. I asked why they were committing crimes? Then I asked if they were taking a shower after they returned. Bala Nandgaonkar (the head of the party) brought the holy water…I told him I wouldn’t drink it…we should come out of the superstitious mindset.”
He asked, “Who would drink that kind of water…I saw a few pools at the beginning and the water turned green…Who would like to swim there?”
Thackeray said there was no clean river in the country.
“We worship the river as mothers. When we travel abroad, I see clean rivers. They don’t worship rivers. Our rivers are all polluted. From the moment Rajiv Gandhi was Prime Minister, we heard about the clean Ganges movement. Raj Kapoor also made a movie on the Ganges…but the Ganges are still unclean…we should get rid of superstitious beliefs,” he said.
