Maha local civic body poll results will mirror Bihar debacle, BJP warns Uddhav Sena

BJP spokesperson Navnath Ban has criticised an editorial published in the Saturday edition of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena’s Marathi daily ‘Saamna’, stating that the Bihar election result is merely a trailer of what will inevitably unfold after the Maharashtra local civic body election results are announced.

Criticising the ‘Saamna’ editorial, BJP spokesperson Navnath Ban said, “Those criticising the Election Commission in the ‘Saamna’ editorial must first read some history and reflect. If you have forgotten history due to the shock of the Bihar results, then let me remind you. Do you remember the 2010 Bihar elections? At that time, there was a Congress government at the Centre. The results were NDA: 206 seats, Opposition Mahaghatbandhan: 25 seats, Others: 8 seats. Back then, voters had already defeated you. So, at least acknowledge the reasons for your defeat in a way the public can understand”.

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“After reading today’s ‘Saamna’ editorial, I realised that you (Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut) really need to take a break, and even more so, you need to introspect,” BJP spokesperson Navnath Ban tweeted on his X account, commenting on an unsigned editorial believed to be written by Sanjay Raut, who is the executive editor of ‘Saamna’ daily.

“The people of Bihar rejected casteism and jungle rule and voted for Mangal Raj. Now, during elections in Maharashtra, including Mumbai, the people will teach you a lesson once again. Bihar is merely a trailer and Mumbai will be the real deal,” BJP spokesperson Navnath Ban stated.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena’s Marathi daily has been renowned in Maharashtra for its editorials since the time when its founder-editor, the late Balasaheb Thackeray, penned stinging editorials. After Balasaheb’s demise, the newspaper is now run by its executive editor, Sanjay Raut, who continues to write its still-popular editorials.

The BJP spokesperson’s statement came in response to an editorial published in the Saturday edition of Saamna, which claimed: “The BJP spread the lie that ‘Nitish Kumar is our Chief Minister.’ Now that the BJP has won more seats than Nitish Kumar in the Bihar assembly, will it live up to its word? The BJP intends to rule Bihar by keeping a weakened Nitish Kumar on the CM’s chair. If given the opportunity to appoint its own chief minister, it will not hesitate to push Nitish Kumar aside and take control of his party.”

“What impact will the Bihar results have on the country’s politics? What lesson should the opposition learn from these results? Will the Bihar results hinder the fight that has begun to protect constitutional institutions like democracy, Parliament, and the Election Commission? We will have to sit together and find answers to many such questions. The situation in Indian democracy has never been so bad. They buy votes by depositing cash in the accounts of women and the unemployed, while the Election Commission of India closes its eyes. This is happening in elections to the Lok Sabha, the state assembly, and local civic bodies,” the ‘Saamna’ editorial stated.

“Democracy in India has died. From now on, elections will be held in the same way. It seems that a formula for the BJP’s election victory has been decided. In Maharashtra, they did not allow Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) to get more than 50 seats, and in Bihar, they applied the same formula. The results of Bihar are not shocking at all. The Election Commission of India and the BJP were seen working hand in hand to ensure that election results were declared in this manner,” the ‘Saamna’ editorial stated.

“If the election watchman himself is helping vote thieves, whom should the people trust? The situation in the country is serious and worrying. It is as if the unlimited rule of the Kauravas has begun and there is no end to it. The drumbeats of Bihar’s victory played on the streets of Delhi is a warning that the funeral march of Indian democracy has begun. Of course, the power to revive the dead lies in Indian democracy and the Constitution. The people will rise again and fight. There is nothing to be shocked by the Bihar results,” the ‘Saamna’ editorial stated.