Raj Thackeray

News India Xtra@newsIndiaxtra

Raj Thackeray of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena says the BJP is using Chhath Puja to stir social tensions in Mumbai, and he urged people not to fall for it.

In an X post, he alleged the party is trying to provoke a clash between Marathis and North Indians before the Uttar Pradesh polls, and pointed to Bhojpuri songs at some Mumbai railway stations that his party moved to stop.

He argued the BJP has run short of ideas and that dividing communities no longer wins it votes, citing past attempts to inflame Hindu-Muslim and caste tensions around elections.

News India Xtra@newsIndiaxtra

MNS chief Raj Thackeray has accused the BJP of hypocrisy over its recent democracy marches, citing the Gokul Dairy row in Kolhapur.

The Congress-backed group took 13 of the 25 seats, defeating the BJP-supported side. Thackeray asked why the government then named five state-appointed members with voting rights, right after that defeat.

Congress MLC Satej Patil claims the aim is to give Gokul to Amul and has called a Kolhapur rally for November 9. NCP's Hasan Mushrif says the move was needed to break a deadlock, since no quorum could be met to elect a chairman.