Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis defended former Chief Justice of India B R Gavai on Sunday after he was criticised for his meeting with Dhirendra Shastri, the chief priest of Bageshwar Dham in Madhya Pradesh.

Meanwhile, after his remarks about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj came under Opposition fire, Shastri Sunday apologised for his comment, adding that his statement has been taken out of context on social media.

Activist Shyam Manav, founder-president of the Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti, criticised Justice Gavai on April 25, stating that the former CJI had now lost the right to invoke the name of Dr B R Ambedkar.

“Who is Shyam Manav to say this? Who gave him this right? Is he the one distributing certificates? Lately, Shyam Manav speaks only for publicity. Since no one pays attention to him, he makes such statements daily to stay in the news,” Fadnavis said.

Referring to the meeting between Gavan and Shastri, Manav had said, ”If Bhushan Gavai, despite holding a supreme position like that of a justice, bows before Dhirendra Shastri, then he should no longer claim the legacy of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar. Bhushan Gavai claims to follow Ambedkarite ideology. But if he is seeking blessings by falling at the feet of Dhirendra Shastri, he should never take Ambedkar’s name again. He has lost that right.”

Challenging Dhirendra Shastri, Manav said, ”If Shastri truly possesses ‘divine vision, he should accept the Anti-Superstition Committee’s challenge and win the Rs 80 lakh prize.”

On Saturday the chief minister, has said that there was no evidence backing Shastri’s statement that Chhatrapati Shivaji was tired of fighting wars.

“Once, tired of war, Shivaji Maharaj went to Ramdas Swami and said he wanted to rest and asked the Swami to handle the state affairs, placing his crown at the Swami’s feet. To this, Ramdas Swami replied, ‘I am the Guru, and you are the disciple. A disciple’s duty is to follow the Guru’s orders. Therefore, I take over the administration and command you to manage it on my behalf’,” Shastri said on April 24.

Both the Congress and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP criticised Shastri. The Congress said the priest was following RSS ideology.

Following the backlash, Shastri issued an apology while stating that his remark has been misinterpreted.

“Since yesterday, my statement has been taken out of context on social media. We cannot insult the very person who inspired our concept of a Hindu Rashtra. We cannot even imagine doing so in our dreams. If Hindus in this country are alive today, it is because of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. The Maratha Empire belongs to all of us. We all revere the Chhatrapati,” he said.

“There was not even a 1% intention to insult him. My speech was meant to glorify the greatness of a Guru and show how much Chhatrapati respected saints and sages. We have tried to build our character by looking at his bravery; there can be no insult to him.If anyone’s sentiments were hurt, I seek their forgiveness,” he added.