Thackeray would lay "green" carpet for Pak

MUMBAI, JAN 9: After congratulating his Sainiks for digging up the Kotla pitch, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray has gone sarcastic as if sa...

MUMBAI, JAN 9: After congratulating his Sainiks for digging up the Kotla pitch, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray has gone sarcastic as if sarcasm was going out of fashion.

In Saturday’s issue of mouthpiece Saamna, he says we should give the Pakis “a green carpet welcome”, that Sharad Pawar must be made to blow the trumpet at the welcome, that ISI agents should be brought in to guard pitches, that Deve Gowda should be put in charge of their hospitality, that the Sena, VHP and Bajrang Dal are anti-nationalistic and India should be guarded from them, that cricket pitches are more important than the lives of young Indian patriots like the four Sainiks (who showed their prowess at gardening at the Kotla), that we should all forget the idea of Akhand Hindustan and start propagating the idea of an Akhand Pakistan….

BJP’s condemnation of the Kotla incident only strengthened the steady but misdirected flow of vitriol from the Sena chief. Stopping short of accusing the ruling party ofbartering the country’s national interests, Thackeray says that is certainly not reason enough for his foot soldiers to create problems for the BJP at the Centre.

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Of course, he continues, there is nothing wrong with the BJP softening its stand on Hindutva “since international interests are more important than national ones.”

Thackeray says despite the widespread condemnation of the Sainiks who took shovels to the pitch, Sena workers should give the Pakistani team a rousing welcome. And, if there is any more gardening at pitches, chief ministers of states where matches will be played should arrest these erring Sainiks and punish them in a manner that would make them feel they are not citizens of India, but Hindu citizens of Pakistan. Cricket pitches are more important than lives of youth whose hearts bleed for their country, he concludes, leaving little scope for argument.

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