‘Way the Aarey issue is being oppressed, it is nothing but dictatorship’: Shiv Sena tears into BJP

Shiv Sena on Monday slammed the central and state government over the “murder” of trees in Mumbai’s Aarey Colony, saying none got affected by the “massacre”.

Comparing the felling of trees in Mumbai’s Aarey Colony with fire in Amazon forest, Shiv Sena in its mouthpiece ‘Saamna’ said that when the latter happened people broke down. However, here neither the Prime Minister got emotional, nor the Chief Minister seemed worried.

“Trees don’t have the right to vote, so order should be given to ‘murder’ them. What kind of justice is this? If the movement to save the ‘Aarey’ forest had taken place in a European country, in America, then how much praise we would have received for it. If there is a fire in a forest abroad, then people cry because of it, but the whole forest is being murdered in front of our eyes, neither the Prime Minister got emotional, nor was the Chief Minister worried for it,” the party stated in its mouthpiece ‘Saamana’.

The party went on to say that the “the way the Aarey issue is being oppressed, it is nothing but dictatorship.”

“The purification of Ganga and Yamuna is on the agenda of the Prime Minister, however, jungle in Mumbai gets cut down, that is acceptable,” it stated. The party added, “The government needs to pay for the sin of cutting down trees in night.” Shiv Sena stated that they are not opposing the development work, but are against the cutting of trees.” A student delegation will meet Chief Justice of India, Ranjan Gogoi today seeking his intervention in the felling of trees in Aarey area of Mumbai for the construction of a car shed.

According to the delegation, there is no time for filing an appeal petition and go through legal technicalities since Mumbai authorities are already cutting the trees in the area.

“It doesn’t matter if the government plants 24 million plants across the state. Every place has a logical significance. Aarey forest is called the lungs of Mumbai. You cannot simply cut out the lungs and implant it somewhere else in the body. It wouldn’t work,” one of the student protestors, Rishav Ranjan told ANI on Sunday.

The Supreme Court has taken cognisance of the trees felling matter in Mumbai’s Aarey Colony and said that a special bench will today hear the petition submitted by a group of law students protesting the action by the authorities. At least 29 protesters were arrested from Aarey after they protested against the authorities cutting down treed in Aarey area following the orders of Mumbai High Court. The protestors were later granted bail by a local court. The protesters opposed the cutting of trees for the construction of the car shed of the metro station. They have demanded the relocation of the bus depot, which is a part of the Metro III project.-ANI news