Terror and cultural ties cannot go hand in hand, said Shiv Sena leader Aditya Thackeray.
A day after renowned Pakistani ghazal singer Ghulam Ali's concert in Mumbai was cancelled, the Shiv Sena, which had helped bring it about, said terror and cultural ties cannot go hand in hand.
"We cannot sit and enjoy and music in Mumbai while soldiers are being martyred in Kashmir. There has to be some sort of boycott," said Aditya Thackeray, Sena chairperson and the son of party chief Uddhav Thackeray.
The party, which governs Maharashtra along with the BJP, had stuck to its demand of cancelling the show despite the public disapproval shown by ally BJP. And party sources said it would not change its stand on Pakistan to be in sync with the BJP.
"It is up to the moral conscience of every politician," Mr Thackeray said.
Asked if the Sena had over-ridden the Chief Minister, who had even offered protection to the renowed artiste, Mr Thackeray said, "It's not the Shiv Sena's word that has prevailed. It's the sensible word that has prevailed."
Terror had been one of the key issues highlighted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his recent visit to the US. The PM had called it "one of the two biggest threats to the world". And External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj had blown the whistle on Pakistan from the floor of the United Nations General Assembly, calling it a perpetrator of terror.
Mr Thackeray said his party's stand on terror and Pakistan has been consistent for 20 years. Earlier, the party had protested against singer Atif Aslam's show and having the Pakistan cricket team play on Indian soil.
But yesterday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had said, "It is wrong to involve Ghulam Ali in Indo-Pak politics.
"What the Sena is doing with Ghulam Ali is absolutely wrong. People like him must be kept above and beyond borders," BJP Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi had added.
The renowned Pakistani ghazal singer, who had even sung at Varanasi -- the constituency of PM Modi -- has said
he was "very hurt" by the cancellation. "I have always got love in India. Such controversies spoil the sur of music," Ghulam Ali had told NDTV.