Pune, Feb 20 (PTI) NCP (SP) leader and Lok Sabha MP Dr Amol Kolhe on Friday delivered a speech on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at the Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU), hours after claiming that a small group of students had opposed his scheduled address there.
Kolhe’s lecture was organised by the SPPU at 4 pm on the occasion of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s birth anniversary celebrated on Thursday.
He reached the university as per the schedule, and delivered the speech.
In a recorded message he posted on social media hours before the lecture, Dr Kolhe claimed that he came to know that a small group of students took a stand that a person with a political background should not be invited to speak on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
“I have not heard anything yet from the university about it, and I will go and deliver my speech as per the schedule. While a small group of students raised objections, a large group of students actually took a stand that the lecture should take place. I think it is my responsibility to talk about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, and I will continue to do that,” Kolhe said on social media.
An actor-turned-politician, Kolhe has portrayed the roles of the legendary Maratha king as well as his son, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, in television serials.
Speaking to reporters on the campus before the lecture, he said that those opposing his address should attend the programme, listen to the lecture and ask questions if needed.
Whenever he plays the character of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, he keeps politics away, he added.
Apparently, a students’ group reportedly opposed Kolhe’s lecture. But no one came forward. PTI SPK NP
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