The Aryavarth Express
Agency(Maharashtra): During a public gathering in Umarkhed, Maharashtra’s Yavatmal district, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to make public the specifics of funds garnered through electoral bonds. He emphasized his party’s commitment to transparency by promising to disclose its own electoral bond donations, distancing Shiv Sena (UBT) from allegations of intimidating donors or exchanging favors for contributions.
The context of Thackeray’s statement includes recent comments from Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who humorously referred to his electoral comeback using a famous movie quote, hinting at his role in the fragmentation of both Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Thackeray criticized Fadnavis’s approach, suggesting that such behavior warranted legal consequences for misrepresenting acquired political assets as their own.
Thackeray refuted the notion that the defection of Eknath Shinde and others from Shiv Sena was ideologically driven, instead attributing it to BJP’s political maneuvering. This claim is underscored by the recent split within Shiv Sena and NCP, which significantly altered Maharashtra’s political landscape.
Additionally, Thackeray responded to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s (RSS) annual report, which implied a resurgence of unrest under the guise of farmers’ protests. He accused the RSS and allied government entities of neglecting farmers’ demands for fair minimum support prices, loan waivers, and equitable agricultural policies, framing such negligence as antithetical to the principles of Hindutva.
Thackeray’s critique extends to the BJP’s ‘Mera Parivar’ campaign, questioning the exclusion of farmers from the envisioned ‘family’ of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. His comments reflect a broader critique of the BJP’s approach to governance, political alliances, and societal inclusion, positioning the Shiv Sena (UBT) as a proponent of transparency and inclusivity in contrast to the BJP’s alleged opacity and divisiveness.