Govt shouldn’t have asked Sachin Tendulkar, Lata Mangeshkar to tweet in their support, says Raj Thackeray

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) president Raj Thackeray on Sunday said the central government should not have ‘asked’ Sachin Tendulkar and Lata Mangeshkar to tweet in support of the government.

“Government shouldn’t have asked big personalities like Sachin Tendulkar and Lata Mangeshkar to tweet in support of its stand and put their reputation at stake. They’re recipients of Bharat Ratna. Actors like Akshay Kumar were enough for this task,” news agency ANI quoted Thackeray as saying.

Earlier too, Thackeray said the central government should not have exposed cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar and legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar to social media trolling by involving them in its campaign to counter tweets by foreign celebrities in support of ongoing farmers’ agitation against India’s contentious farm laws.

On February 3, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar had tweeted, “India’s sovereignty cannot be compromised. External forces can be spectators but not participants. Indians know India and should decide for India. Let’s remain united as a nation. #IndiaTogether #IndiaAgainstPropaganda”.

Same day, veteran singer Lata Mangeshkar also tweeted, “Namaskar…India is a glorious nation and we all Indians stand with our heads held high. As a proud Indian, I have full faith, that any issues or problems that as a country we face; we are fully equipped to resolve them amicably, keeping the interest of our people in mind. Jai Hind.”

This came after the farmers’ agitation in India garnered attention globally, with international figures – pop star Rihanna, climate activist Greta Thunburg – showing support for the movement. Both of them had shared a solidarity post on Twitter recently, which fanned a lot of controversy.

Many celebrities including Ajay Devgn, Akshay Kumar, Tendulkar and Mangeshkar rallied around the government on social media using hashtags #IndiaTogether and #IndiaAgainstPropaganda following tweets by Rihanna and climate activist Greta Thunberg backing farmers.