Union Home Minister Amit Shah is a “staunch nationalist”, but he should accept the fact that there is democracy in the country, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said here on Wednesday.
The Sena’s Rajya Sabha member was speaking at an awards ceremony of the media group Lokmat.
During a public interview, he was asked to describe the qualities of some prominent leaders and also to give them advise in a rapid-fire session.
About Narendra Modi, Raut said he was a very hard working man. “I do not have the right to give him any advice. He is the Prime Minister,” he said. “But as ajournalist, I would like to say that he should check what is going on among his colleagues,” the Sena leader said in a cryptic remark.
When it came to Shah, Raut said the BJP president was a “staunch nationalist” and some of his decisions, such as the scrapping of Article 370, were commendable. “But in some cases he should accept that there is democracy in the country and understand the opposition’s view,”he said.
On Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Raut said, “He is good at heart, but he should spend at least 15 hours in the party office.”
Asked about Nitin Gadkari, he said the senior BJP leader should work more in Delhi. “We need a BJP leader from Maharashtra like him to stand strongly in Delhi,” Raut added.
He had good relations with Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar, Raut said, adding that he should not do anything that benefits the BJP.
Assauddin Owaisi, leader of the All India Majlis-e- Ittehadul Muslimeen, is a fine legal expert, but he should change his image as a “vote-cutting machine”, Raut said.
