Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday offered ₹1 crore for the construction of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.
The amount would not be on behalf of the Maharashtra government or his party Shiv Sena, but a personal contribution towards the Trust in the capacity of “a Bhakt,” he clarified.
Addressing a press conference in Ayodhya, Mr. Thackeray said he might have parted ways with the BJP, but that did not mean a departure from Hindutva. “Hindutva and BJP are separate. The meaning of Hindutva is not BJP.”
He said just as the Ram Mandir would be built brick-by-brick, his ₹1 crore would also be a small contribution towards the building of the temple. “Whenever I come to Ayodhya or the Ram Mandir strikes my mind, I recall the days when my father Balasaheb [Bal Thackeray] had provided leadership…and when people from villages across Maharashtra brought with them bricks with Sriram engraved on them,” he said.
He requested members of the Ram Temple Trust to accept “this small contribution of us Ram bhakts.” He also requested Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to grant land to the Maharashtra government to construct a Maharashtra Bhawan in Ayodhya for pilgrims coming from the State.