Uddhav Thackeray bats for opposition dialogue as AAP accuses Congress of suppressing CJP protest

New Delhi: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday said that just as the government should engage in dialogue with the protesting students, opposition parties also should talk to each other on the issue.

His remarks came in response to AAP's allegation that Congress was the BJP's "B-Team" and staged a protest in front of the Prime Minister's residence on Tuesday to suppress the Cockroach Janata Party's (CJP) agitation, suggesting differences within the opposition over the ongoing students' protest.

"We must stand behind the youth. I am with the youth, which is why I met Abhijeet (Dipke). Just as the government should talk to the youth, the opposition should also talk to each other," Thackeray, who arrived in Delhi on Tuesday evening and went to the Jantar Mantar to meet the CJP founder, told a press conference.


Read more: Mumbai sees 2nd day of pro-CJP protests; Raj slams govt, Sena (UBT) to give legal aid to activists

Hours after the press conference, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal met Thackeray at Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut's residence here.

Thackeray said he had backed the students' agitation from the very beginning and accused the Centre of refusing to engage with them despite the protest continuing for more than a month.

"I have backed this protest since day one. The youth are the future of the country. If you are going to crush them, they will not accept it. When you call them cockroaches, it goes beyond all limits of tolerance. The youth will not remain silent if dictatorship is imposed on the country," Thackeray said.

Questioning the government's handling of the agitation, the former Maharashtra chief minister said dialogue was the essence of democracy.

"What is wrong with talking to the youth? They have been protesting for more than a month. Had the government spoken to them, the issue would have been resolved," he said.

"Whenever anyone stages a protest, it is the government's duty to go and speak to them. If they are under some misconception, it is the government's responsibility to clear it through dialogue. Had the government spoken to them on the very first day, matters would never have reached this point," Thackeray said.

Recalling earlier instances of governments engaging with protesters, Thackeray said former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi personally met Sonam Wangchuk's father during a hunger strike in Leh, while the UPA government deputed then-Union minister Vilasrao Deshmukh to hold talks with Anna Hazare during his anti-corruption movement.

If the government could keep channels of dialogue open with Pakistan despite accusing it of sponsoring terrorism, it should have no hesitation in engaging with the protesting students, Thackeray said.

Read more: Uddhav Thackeray backs CJP and Sonam Wangchuk's protest, urges activist to end fast

He cited RSS general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale's remarks in a PTI interview in May that there should always be a window for dialogue between the civil societies of India and Pakistan.

Condemning the police action against the protesters on Monday, Thackeray alleged that women and even young girls were assaulted.

"I saw young girls, barely nine or 10 years old, and several women... The way they were treated, I do not believe Hindu culture sanctions such behaviour towards women. A girl's clothes were torn. Is this Hindu culture? This is Ravana culture," he said.