NCP MP Supriya Sule on February 28 took objection to Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari's comment that Samarth Ramdas was the guru of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and said there is no evidence of the duo having the teacher-disciple relationship.
Ms. Sule also cited a July 16, 2018 judgment of the Aurangabad Bench of Bombay High Court, before which the State government had submitted that “no record was available to show that Shivaji Maharaj had occasion to meet Ramdas or Shivaji Maharaj was treating Ramdas as his guru.” “There is no evidence of there being a guru-shishya relationship between Ramdas and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj," the Lok Sabha member from Maharashtra tweeted while referring to the court Order.
Mr. Koshyari, during a programme in Aurangabad on Sunday, underlined the role of the guru (teacher) while citing the examples of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Chandragupta Maurya.
"Many chakravartis (emperors), maharajas took birth on this land. But, who would have asked about Chandragupta had there not been Chanakya? Who would have asked about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj had there not been Samarth (Ramdas)," he said.
"I am not questioning the calibre of Chandragupta and Shivaji Maharaj. Like a mother who plays a key role in shaping her child, similarly, the role of guru (teacher) has a big place in our society," the Governor had said.
While objecting to it, Ms. Sule also shared an old clip of her father and NCP chief Sharad Pawar commenting that Ramdas was not the guru of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
In the clip, Mr. Pawar can be heard saying that Rajmata Jijamata, mother of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was the guru of the Maratha warrior king, and that some people "who had pens in their hands” created the perception that Ramdas mentored Shivaji Maharaj.
Notably, the Maharashtra government, comprising the Shiv Sena, the NCP and the Congress and Mr. Koshyari have engaged in a war of words over various issues in the past.
