MUMBAI:  Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray has blamed the VHP, RSS and BJP for exploiting the Ram Mandir issue for elections while stating that doing so would mean an insult to those who laid down their lives for the temple. 

In an editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana on Friday, Thackeray also urged RSS-VHP to end Vanavaas for Ram while taking credit for bringing the issue of Ram Mandir to the forefront.

RSS Sarsanghachalak Mohan Bhagwat on Tuesday had made it clear that the plans for agitation on the Ram Mandir issue have been suspended till after the elections. Referring to the decision the editorial said, “Avoiding the Mandir issue might have been a compulsion or an internal issue for the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP). All things are aligned to elections...”

The editorial also attacked the Modi government for trying to shrug off the Ram Mandir issue and questioned whether RSS and VHP have wound up the issue for it should not be a hurdle in 2019 Lok Sabha polls for Modi and the BJP.Thackeray also raised the issue of differences within the NDA over the issue of Ram Mandir and said that the issue needs to be settled before the ensuing general polls.