A day after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath reiterated his ‘batenge to katenge’ slogan at an election rally in Maharashtra, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ally and Nationalist leader Congress Party (NCP) Ajit Pawar on Thursday said the people of the state were doing so. does not appreciate such remarks. The move is seen as the NCP, a key ally of Mahayuti, distancing itself from the BJP over the slogan used by its leaders during the election campaign.

“The people of Maharashtra have always strived hard to maintain communal harmony,” Deputy Chief Minister Pawar said in Pune while responding to a question on Yogi’s remarks.

Pawar said no one should compare Maharashtra with other states. “Some from outside come here and make statements, but Maharashtra has never accepted any communal division,” he said.

“Maharashtra belongs to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj and Mahatma Phule. You don’t compare Maharashtra with other states, people of Maharashtra don’t like it. Shivaji Maharaj’s teaching was to involve all sections of society,” Pawar told reporters.

Yogi had made the statement during an election rally in Washim in eastern Maharashtra.