'Karachi Will be Part of India One Day': BJP's Devendra Fadnavis on Sweet Shop Row
23-November-2020

Former Maharashtra Chief Minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis has said that the Pakistan city of Karachi will be a part of India one day. "We believe in 'Akhand Bharat'. We also believe that Karachi will be a part of India one day," he said on Saturday.

The comments come amid an ongoing back and forth after a Shiv Sena leader Nitin Madhukar Nandgaonkar threatened the owner of a sweet shop in Bandra - Karachi Sweets - to change its name as it coincided with a city in Pakistan.

In a video that went viral, Nandgaonkar was seen telling the owner of the sweet shop in Bandra West how he 'hates the name because of its association with Pakistan and terrorists'. The owner then tried to explain to Nandgaonkar that the name was given by his ancestors because they had come from Karachi after the partition, to which the Shiv Sena leader argued that he can name his shop after anything, his ancestors or himself but not Karachi because it is a "place associated with terrorists".

Soon after Nandgaonkar's action created furor on social media, Sanjay Raut said it was not the official stance of the Shiv Sena for the name to be changed, and defended the name of the sweet shop. He said Karachi bakery and Karachi sweets had been in Mumbai since last 60 years and had nothing to do with Pakistan. "It makes no sense to ask for changing their names now," he had said.

Fadvanis' comments followed, which in turn generated a response by NCP leader Nawab Malik who said the Maharashtra party would welcome BJP's move "if it creates one country by merging India, Pakistan and Bangladesh".

Replying to his statement, Malik said that the way Fadnavis had said Karachi would be a part of India in time, the NCP has been saying that India, Pakistan and Bangladesh should be merged.

"If the Berlin wall can be demolished then why can't India, Pakistan and Bangladesh come together? If BJP wishes to merge these three countries and make a single country, we will welcome it definitely," he said.