In an address to party workers in Maharashtra’s Pune on Saturday, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Union Minister Amit Shah. Thackeray accused the BJP of engaging in “power jihad” by breaking political parties to stay in government and likened Amit Shah to Ahmad Shah Abdali, the Afghan ruler who defeated the Marathas in the Battle of Panipat.
Countering Shah’s earlier remark that referred to Thackeray as the head of the “Aurangzeb Fan Club,” Thackeray retorted by calling Shah the “political descendent” of Abdali. Thackeray stated, “From today, I will call Amit Shah Abdali. If you call me a fake descendant, I will call you Abdali.”
अहमद शहा अब्दालीचा राजकीय वंशज अमित शहा pic.twitter.com/IosBhE6A9Q
— ShivSena – शिवसेना Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray (@ShivSenaUBT_) August 3, 2024
Addressing the splitting of the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Thackeray accused the BJP of breaking parties to consolidate power. “If Muslims are with us after we explain to them our Hindutva, then according to the BJP, we are the Aurangzeb Fan Club. What you are doing is power jihad,” Thackeray said.
Uddhav Thackeray’s ‘Revdi’ Jibe At Eknath Shinde-Led Maharashtra Govt
He also criticised the Eknath Shinde government over the ‘Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin’ scheme, accusing it of bribing voters with “revdis” (freebies).
In the rally in Pune, Thackeray remarked, “Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu are not Hindutva-vaadi. Amit Shah should explain what kind of Hindutva he follows. Abdali’s descendant came to Pune and spoke. Does Amit Shah accept the RSS’s Hindutva? BJP has started power jihad. Power jihad means stealing people to form a government. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj did not teach us to burn others’ houses. Shankaracharya said that traitors are not Hindus. You have betrayed (us).”
Thackeray also targeted Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. He dismissed Fadnavis’s claims and stated, “I do not challenge any bug. You do not have the capacity for that. Either you will stay, or I will. Some people thought I was challenging them. I do not challenge any bug. I represent a cultured Maharashtra, while you represent those who loot Maharashtra and the party. Bugs should not be challenged; they should be crushed under the thumb.”
Continuing his sharp criticism, Thackeray said, “You said, ‘Do not mess with me.’ You do not have the capacity for us to mess with you. Those who destroy cannot remain in power. That is why I say, either you will stay, or I will.”
