Ours is a battle to save democracy: Aaditya Thackeray

Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray said that chief minister Eknath Shinde can steal Shiv Sena name and symbol but cannot steal Mumbaikars’ love for Thackerays and the party.

He urged the people to unite against the “anti-democratic party” to save Mumbai from the dominance of the Central power of Delhi.

“They can steal our party name and symbol but cannot steal the love in the hearts of people of Mumbai and Maharashtra. This is not the battle of Shiv Sena, but to save democracy and the Constitution. Let us unite and fight with them. Victory will be ours,” Thackeray said.

The Thackeray scion was speaking at a show of strength in Worli on Sunday. This was the first rally after the Election Commission of India gave the Shiv Sena name and symbol to the Shinde-led faction.

Aaditya Thackeray reiterated that the Shinde-Fadnavis government will fall before its expansion. “This government will fall very soon. Even industrialists know this fact and that is the reason they are not ready to invest in Maharashtra,” he said. He also called Shinde’s government Ali Baba and 40 thieves.

A few weeks ago, CM Shinde’s rally in Worli witnessed a low turnout and even deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who was expected to attend the event, did not turn up.

In this backdrop, Aaditya Thackeray’s rally holds importance for the Thackeray faction. Leaders like MP Arvind Sawant, MLA Bhaskar Jadhav, Sushma Andhare, MLC Sachin Ahir and Sunil Shinde were present in the rally.

Taking a dig at the government for losing many projects to Gujarat, he asked if Shinde was the CM of Maharashtra or Gujarat.