New Delhi, Mar 27 (IANS): Following the uproar over Rahul Gandhi's remark referring to Hindutva ideologue V.D. Savarkar, Uddhav Thackeray, the chief of Shiv Sena (UBT), has decided to skip the Opposition meet convened by the leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha and Congress President, Mallikarjun Kharge.

"My name is not Savarkar, I won't apologise," Rahul Gandhi had said after he was disqualified from the Lok Sabha following his conviction by a Surat court in a 2019 criminal defamation case.

Sources in the Shiv Sena indicated that the party is upset over the remark, which has come to haunt the Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition.

The development came a day after Thackeray publicly appealed to Rahul Gandhi to refrain from insulting Savarkar.

While declaring his full support to Rahul Gandhi in his fight against the BJP, Thackeray, however, reiterated his plea and urged the Congress leader "to refrain from targeting Veer Savarkar who's our idol".

"I am publicly appealing to Rahul Gandhi... You are doing a great job, fighting for the country. But, Savarkar is our icon... We shall not tolerate any insult to him," Thackeray had said while addressing a rally in the Muslim-dominated Malegaon town in Nashik late on Sunday.