The country is missing the wisdom of Manmohan Singh at a time the economy is in the hands of the "economically unsound leadership", MNS chief Raj Thackeray said while praising the former prime minister on his birthday.
Thackeray described Singh, who had served as the prime minister for two consecutive terms between 2004 and 2014, as a leader who "pioneered the country to a path of economic reforms and liberalisation".
Singh, born on this day in 1932 in Gah, Punjab (now in Pakistan), turned 86 Wednesday.
Thackeray, who was a supporter of Prime Minister Narendra Modi when the latter was the chief minister of Gujarat, has turned into his vocal critic in the last five years.
Ahead of 2014 polls, the MNS chief had supported Modi's candidature for the post of prime minister.
"Today, our economy is in the hands of economically unsound leadership and thus heading to a state of anarchy," Thackeray said in a post on twitter without referring to any leader or government.
"In such times, the people of India, including me, definitely miss your wisdom and presence," Thackeray said in a post on Twitter.
He claimed that the beneficiaries of the "economic openness" heralded by Singh in 1991 have chosen against acknowledging it. Stating that criticism is part of politics, Thackeray said his party has the grace to appreciate what is good.
"In this context, I remember Dr Manmohan Singh's words from one of his speeches: 'History will be kinder to me'. The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena wishes you a very happy birthday," Thackeray said on the micro-blogging site.
Singh, while rejecting criticism that he was a "weak Prime Minister", had in January 2014 asserted that history would be kind to him than the then Opposition and media, and contended that he had done the best in the given political circumstances.
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