Fadnavis showing weakness by blaming Nagpur violence on film 'Chhaava': Shiv Sena (UBT)

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena (UBT) on Thursday said Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis 'blaming' the film Chhaava for the Nagpur violence was a sign of his "weak morale."

The editorial in the party mouthpiece 'Saamana' asked, on a sarcastic note, of the BJP-led government was planning to register cases against the film's actors, director and producers over Monday's incidents in the state's second capital.

The climax of the historical film depicting the brutal execution of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, the second ruler of the Maratha state, on the orders of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb incited emotions, it said.

"Blaming Chhaava for Nagpur riots is a sign of Devendra Fadnavis's weak morale," the editorial said.

On Tuesday, Fadnavis had stated that the film presented the true story of the Maratha king, and after watching it people were expressing their anger about Aurangzeb, a 17th century ruler, in a big way.

In the aftermath of the film's release, Hindu right-wing groups have been demanding that Aurangzeb's tomb in Maharashtra's Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district be removed.

The Saamana editorial noted that the brutal execution of Sambhaji Maharaj on the Mughal Emperor's orders was a known history. There have been many books of history and novels on this subject, but no one until now thought of digging up Aurangzeb's tomb, it pointed out.

The Sena (UBT) mouthpiece also claimed that late RSS chief M S Golwalkar and freedom fighter and Hindutva ideologue V D Savarkar had written about Sambhaji Maharaj in unflattering terms. If their writings did not incite riots, why should people resort to violence after watching a film, it asked.

Rumours about a ‘chadar’ with Quranic inscriptions being burnt during protests led by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal seeking the removal of Aurangzeb's tomb led to violence in Nagpur on Monday in which several police personnel were injured. Fadnavis stated in the assembly on Wednesday that no such chadar with holy inscriptions was found to have been burnt, but the rumours incited passions.