GG News Bureau
Mumbai, 5th July: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday responded with biting sarcasm to the dramatic reunion of cousins Uddhav and Raj Thackeray during their ‘Voice of Marathi’ rally, claiming Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray “must be showering him with blessings” for achieving what the late leader could not — bringing his estranged nephews back together.
The comment came after Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray declared at the rally that “Devendra Fadnavis did what Balasaheb Thackeray could not” by uniting the cousins on stage for the first time since their split in 2005.
Reacting later in the day, Fadnavis said, “I am grateful to Raj Thackeray for giving me the credit. Balasaheb must be blessing me from above.” He took further jabs at Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray, saying his speech had little to do with Marathi pride and more to do with mourning the loss of his government following the 2022 rebellion by current Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
“I was told it would be a ‘vijay’ (victory) rally, but it turned out to be a ‘rudali’ (mourning) speech. Instead of speaking about Marathi interests, Uddhav Thackeray kept complaining about how his government fell,” Fadnavis remarked.
The ‘Voice of Marathi’ rally was held in Mumbai to celebrate the Maharashtra government’s rollback of its earlier decision mandating a three-language formula — including Hindi — in primary schools, which had faced backlash from regional parties.
Speaking at the event, Raj Thackeray declared the rollback a win for Marathi unity and warned the state government against undermining regional identity. “Try to touch Maharashtra and see what happens,” he said. Uddhav Thackeray echoed the sentiment, saying the rift between the two had ended and took direct aim at the BJP and Eknath Shinde, calling the latter a “traitor.”
Fadnavis dismissed their show of unity as theatrical and ineffective. “Shiv Sena ruled Mumbai’s BMC for 25 years and achieved nothing. Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP has transformed the city. The Marathi ‘manoos’ is with us,” he asserted.
With both factions sharpening their regional rhetoric ahead of civic elections in Mumbai, the political heat between the BJP-Shinde alliance and the Thackeray cousins is likely to intensify in the coming months.
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