Aaditya Thackeray slams BJP’s Hindutva, calls Eknath Shinde ‘contractor mantri’

Uddhav-led Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray accused the BJP of propagating a “fake Hindutva” and called Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde a “Contractor Mantri” in a recent interview with India Today TV. Thackeray highlighted the differences between his party’s ideals and the BJP’s approach to Hindutva.
The remark comes as the Election Commission of India announced the poll schedule for Maharashtra Assembly elections on Tuesday. The polls in Maharashtra will be held in a single phase on November 20. The results will be declared in November 23.
“Our Hindutva is not the BJP’s Hindutva,” said Thackeray. He emphasised that their version of Hindutva protects religious values without imposing restrictions on what people should eat or wear. “BJP wants to attack Muslims in India while staying silent on atrocities against Hindus in Bangladesh,” he said, questioning the government’s decision to play cricket with Bangladesh while such claims circulate within the masses.
Thackeray further slammed the BJP’s eagerness to inaugurate the Ram Temple in Ayodhya for electoral gains, while asserting that his party had visited the temple multiple times without politicising it.
Responding to allegations of stalling development projects, Thackeray denied blocking progress and instead invited Shinde for a public debate. “Let’s start with why he had to run away,” he said, referring to Shinde’s defection from the Shiv Sena in 2022.
Thackeray didn’t hold back on his assessment of Shinde, branding him as a leader serving the interests of contractors. “This CM is not a common man, he’s a Contractor Mantri,” Thackeray said, adding that Maharashtra is being sold to industrialists and contractor friends of Shinde.
Despite political setbacks, Thackeray remains defiant. “Even if I lose, I will not stop fighting for Maharashtra and Mumbai,” he asserted, addressing the sense of betrayal after the Shiv Sena’s split.