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Want Shiv Sena, BJP to fight together in 2019 elections: Amit Shah

WION Web Team
New Delhi, IndiaUpdated: May 26, 2018, 04:36 PM IST
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Amit Shah. Photograph:(ANI)

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Asked about the Shiv Sena not wanting to ally with the BJP, Amit Shah said, 'You should ask them'

BJP President Amit Shah said on Saturday that members of the party wanted to fight along with the Shiv Sena in the 2019 elections.

"I repeat this, that we want Shiv Sena and BJP to fight together in 2019 elections," Amit Shah said while addressing the press in New Delhi.

Asked about the Shiv Sena not wanting to ally with the BJP, Amit Shah said, "You should ask them", adding that they are still together in both the centre and the Maharashtra governments.

Yesterday, while referring to the growing conflict with the Shiv Sena in Maharashtra, Amit Shah had said he would not want to give up the coalition with the party but that the BJP will not be left with an option if the Shiv Sena insisted on breaking up the old time alliance with them.

In a scathing editorial on Friday in its mouthpiece "Saamana", the Shiv Sena had called the BJP a "mad murderer" that was stabbing anyone coming in its way.

The Sena said it had decided to fight all the elections alone, be it the Palghar bypoll or the recently-held Legislative Council elections.

"This is just the beginning of tomorrow's fight," the Sena had said in an apparent reference to the next year's Lok Sabha elections.

In his press conference, Amit Shah also addressed the question of rising prices of petrol and diesel that was being raised by the Congress.

"The current prices of petrol and diesel were the same during three years of Congress government. But they are fed up of these raised prices in only three days in our government? Government is thinking about that and will form a long-term solution for it," the BJP chief said.

On Rahul Gandhi's tweet marking the performance of the Modi government in four years, Amit Shah said, "What else do you expect from Rahul Gandhi? He is in the opposition, he has to do this. Woh thodi na hamare bakhan karenge. (They will not praise us). We have presented facts and figures and anyone can challenge that."

On four years of the Modi government, Amit Shah praised PM Modi for being hardworking and said he was the most popular leader in the world.

"BJP provided the most hardworking Prime Minister and the most popular leader in the world to the country, a PM who works for 15-18 hours a day. We are proud that this Prime Minister is a leader of BJP," the BJP President said.

The BJP chief also said that his party had a "zero tolerance policy" when it came to protecting the country's borders.

"Bharatiya Janata Party considers war the last option. However, we have zero tolerance regarding safety of our borders. The mostnumber  of terrorists have been killed in BJP government," he said.