Mumbai, Apr 3 (UNI) Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday said his party voted against the Waqf bill in Parliament to oppose the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Alliance government’s “ploy” to “grab land and give it to its industrialist friends”.

Addressing a press conference in Mumbai after the Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha, Sena president Thackery said, "The concern shown by the BJP and its allies during the discussion on the Waqf Amendment Bill would put Pakistan's founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah to shame."

"The BJP has won a third term at the Centre and things are going well, yet it is raking up Hindu-Muslim issues and if the aim is to appease Muslims, then who left Hindutva – BJP or us who opposed the bill? How can they blame us?" he remarked.

He said, "On one hand BJP leaders, including Union home minister Amit Shah, made speeches appeasing Muslims while advocating the Bill, while on the other they targeted those who voted against the Bill."

“We voted against it to oppose the hypocrisy of BJP and their intentions of land grabbing through this Bill," he said adding, "The BJP should remove colour green from its party flag if it dislikes Muslims.”

Thackeray further said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should have informed the country about the economic challenges posed by US tariffs and steps being taken to mitigate it.

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