Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Sunday stated while referring to the ongoing farmer’s protest row that has been sparked amongst a bunch of celebrities and prominent personalities recently. The MNS chief said that the government should not have “asked” big personalities like former batsman Sachin Tendulkar and legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar to tweet in their support on the issue and put their “reputation” at stake.
This comes after when some celebrities and sports personalities such as cricketer Virat Kohli, actor Akshay Kumar, and badminton star Saina Nehwal took to Twitter and express their views on the current scenario of farmers protest in the country.
The MNS chief said that the agitation is against the government policies and not concerning issues of national interest.
“The government should not have asked big personalities like Sachin Tendulkar and Lata Mangeshkar to tweet in support of its stand and put their reputation at stake. They are recipients of Bharat Ratna. Actors like Akshay Kumar were enough for this task,” said Raj.
Raj further continued, “This issue was about the policies of the government and not of the country. It was not a matter related to China or Pakistan. It was a matter of farmers. The Bharat Ratna recipients tweeted on behalf of the government and now they are being trolled.”
Days after Tendulkar made comments on the protest by farmers, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar had asked the former Indian cricketer to “exercise caution while speaking about other fields”.
“Many people (celebrities) have reacted sharply to the stand taken by them (farmers). My suggestion to Sachin Tendulkar is he should be cautious while commenting on fields other than his domain,” Pawar had said.
Taking to Twitter, former Indian cricket team captain tweeted: “India’s sovereignty cannot be compromised. External forces can be spectators but not participants. Indians know India and should decide for India. Let’s remain united as a nation. #IndiaTogether #IndiaAgainstPropaganda.”
India’s sovereignty cannot be compromised. External forces can be spectators but not participants.
Indians know India and should decide for India. Let's remain united as a nation.#IndiaTogether #IndiaAgainstPropaganda— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) February 3, 2021
Tendulkar remarks came following international pos singer Rihanna and Sweden teenage environmentalist Greta Thunberg commented on farmers’ protests.
Farmers from the different states especially from Punjab and Haryana have been protesting against the newly enacted farm bills over 70 days at the border of Delhi. Several rounds of talks have been taken place between the farmers and government however nothing has been done yet.
