Won’t let BJP and Adani take away Mumbai, say Thackeray cousins

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Navnirma Sena leader Raj Thackeray launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday, January 11, 2025, accusing the party of pursuing divisive politics and systematically “isolating” Mumbai’s Marathi. Manoos. They also accused the national party of facilitating land grabbing to benefit the Adani Group and conspiring to “separate Mumbai from Maharashtra and bring it closer to Gujarat”.

Mr. Raj Thackeray presented maps of India and Maharashtra showing the expansion of Adani Group projects between 2014 and 2025 and asked how an industrialist is preferred in the country and state. “Cement prices have increased rapidly. Are we paying attention to this? We are stuck in Hindu-Marathi,” said Raj Thackeray, adding that Mumbai was slowly being destroyed.

While Mr. Uddhav Thackeray claimed that the use of cement produced by Adani Group in projects in the city contributed to pollution, the BJP built the “Hindu-Muslims, Hindu-Marathi Mayor” narrative. He also criticized the BJP for disrupting the social fabric of Maharashtra and wanting to control the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to implement its plans to loot Mumbai.

He listed the projects and land parcels handed over to Adani in the last 10 years, including Tarapur Nuclear Power Project, Tungareshwar Conservation Area land, 24 acres for Bandra Reclamation Redevelopment Project and the Group’s cement plants at Titwala, Mohane, Ambivali and Shahad.

“Adani has bagged 124 acres of Motilal Nagar redevelopment project worth 36,000 crore, a contract worth 13,888 crore for installation of smart electricity meters in Maharashtra, 92 acres for a data center in Airoli, RTO land in Andheri West, 20 acres of Kurla Mother Dairy land and various other projects,” he said.

Giving an example, Mr. Raj Thackeray said that the BJP is conspiring to control land in Mumbai, aiming to gradually shift the operations of Mumbai airport to Navi Mumbai and sell the airport land near Dharavi. “Vadhwan port is close to Gujarat, so they control Palghar district and part of Thane. Why are we stuck between caste and religion?”

The Thackeray cousins ​​were speaking ahead of municipal elections scheduled for January 15 in various cities, including Mumbai. The BMC elections are crucial for the Thackeray cousins ​​and they have formed an alliance for the first time in two decades.

The elections will also be the first time that Mr Uddhav Thackeray’s Sena will contest without an alliance with the BJP and prove its appeal among voters in the 227-seat Mumbai civic body.

Hindu, Muslim and Marathi Manoos

During the public meeting at Shivaji Park in Mumbai, Maharashtra, Mr. Uddhav Thackeray claimed that the BJP does not want the Hindutavadi Shiv Sena as an ally because the party will not allow them to take over and control the BMC. “They may accept partnership with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who once put forward this slogan”sangh mukt bharat” And [Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister] “Chandrababu Naidu, but not us,” said Mr. Uddhav Thackeray, adding that the BJP is no longer a “country-first party, but a corruption-first, rape-first party that agitates the larger society and provokes other smaller communities to consolidate votes and win elections.”

He also challenged Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to deliver a speech without talking about “Hindu-Muslim” relations.

Meanwhile, his cousin Mr. Raj Thackeray also questioned the voters. “Who is Marathi? manoosIs it easily bought with money? What is your value? These may be the last elections for Marathi’s existence manoos.”

He also criticized Tamil Nadu BJP leader K. Annamalai and accused the party of creating divisions between the Marathi community and other communities, including south Indian and Jain-Marwadi people. Referring to the recent controversy regarding the ban on feeding pigeons in the capital, Thackeray said, “See how they provoke people in the name of pigeons. They want you to isolate and separate you from others.”

Shiv Sena was in power in BMC for 25 consecutive years from 1997 to 2022, after which elections are being held for the first time.

Worli MP Aaditya Thackeray showed photographs of the Coastal Road project, including geotechnical survey, inauguration, stone laying ceremony and tunnel boring machine, and said the party was now trying to get a share of the project. “At that time, the BJP had boycotted the inaugural programme. Who boycotts their own government’s programme? This machine was brought in during our tenure. We are not against anyone but we are fighting for Maharashtra,” Mr. Aaditya said.

Meanwhile, NCP-SP leader Jayant Patil announced that the mayor of Mumbai will be determined by the Thackeray cousins ​​and called on the people to vote for them, saying, “Someone is trying to take revenge on Chattrapati Shivaji Maharaj, who plundered Surat 300 years ago.”

It was published – 12 January 2026 03:00 IST