Shiv Sena-UBT supremo Uddhav Thackeray delivered a blistering onslaught against the Bharatiya Janata Party in a television interview on January 8, 2026, as the battle for control of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation intensifies, charging that the party's relentless pursuit of authority has severely compromised Maharashtra's longstanding traditions of principled and respectful political discourse while predicting electoral oblivion for the rival Eknath Shinde faction.

Dismissing the BJP's longstanding assertion of being the authentic custodian of Hindutva ideology, Thackeray contended that its core motivation remains unbridled ambition for power, drawing historical parallels to the Jan Sangh's calculated participation in the United Maharashtra movement—joining belatedly and withdrawing expediently—while accusing contemporary leaders of feigning piety and forging alliances with any entity, including controversial figures, solely to retain governmental control.

He pointed to alleged inconsistencies in the BJP's Hindutva stance, asserting that certain ministers privately consume beef despite publicly championing cow protection and religious orthodoxy, and characterized the party's growth strategy as akin to a predatory single-celled amoeba that indiscriminately absorbs rivals and resources, further criticizing its recent local-level partnership with AIMIM in Akot Municipal Council as a form of political "Love Jihad."

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Voicing profound dismay at the transformed character of Maharashtra politics under the current dispensation, Thackeray described the impending BMC elections as unfolding in an unprecedentedly distorted environment marked by overt impunity, contrasting it with an era when wrongdoing prompted retreat rather than defiance, and demanded scrupulously fair electoral processes to restore institutional credibility.

Reaffirming regional identity amid perceived cultural incursions, Thackeray declared unequivocally that Mumbai's next mayor must be a Marathi-speaking individual, challenged attempts to redefine suburban linguistic demographics through imposition of Hindi or Gujarati influences, and lambasted the state government for accumulating Rs 3 lakh crore in municipal debt through systematic resource diversion while fostering an atmosphere of intimidation and marginalization against the indigenous Marathi populace, which he attributed to overreach enabled by centralized power in Delhi.

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