Maharashtra politics: Uddhav Thackeray, Devendra Fadnavis spar over ‘taint’ jibe

BJP leaders from Nagpur have demanded Uddhav Thackeray’s apology over his remark on Devendra Fadnavis. File pics/Ashish Raje

BJP workers have demanded an apology from Uddhav Thackeray for calling Devendra Fadnavis a ‘taint on Nagpur', but the Shiv Sena leader reiterated the jibe on Tuesday. In response, Fadnavis said his former friend, and now political opponent, needed psychiatric treatment to recover from the after-effects of recent developments.

Thackeray had made the statement on Monday in Nagpur where protests began immediately from the BJP camp. The agitation was intensified by the party on Tuesday in Nagpur and elsewhere. BJP leaders from Nagpur demanded Thackeray's apology. Fadnavis's office had released a statement accusing Thackeray of ‘earning too many taints' by virtue of his political moves. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari condemned the jibe, as did state BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule. "Levelling personal allegations at such a low level does not suit the political culture of Maharashtra," said Gadkari in a social media post.

On Tuesday, the verbal battle continued with Thackeray standing by his statement. He said he had hit the BJP where it hurts most. On Monday, he played an old audio clip of Fadnavis stating that the BJP would never join hands with the NCP. "They should tell us why tainted people (of NCP) have been inducted in the Cabinet. They should also tell us whether the corruption allegations were false," he said, adding that the families of some leaders were hounded before they were given a place in the cabinet.

Needs treatment: Fadnavis

Fadnavis said, "The truth is that I am sad to see that the political situation has adversely impacted the psyche of our current political opponent and former friend. It appears that because of this, he might need to take psychiatrists' advice. I don't need to react if someone has said something like this in such a mental state."