Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Mumbai, Jun 20: Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Saturday launched a sharp attack on the current political landscape in Maharashtra, criticising frequent defections and accusing political leaders of sacrificing self-respect for power.

Addressing MNS office-bearers from Mumbai, Thane, Pune and Nashik, Thackeray expressed concern over what he called the erosion of moral values in politics and questioned the example being set for future generations.

His remarks came amid the political developments surrounding “Operation Tiger”, an exercise associated with Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde, which recently led to six of the nine Lok Sabha MPs from Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) joining the Shinde-led faction.

Criticising the repeated fragmentation of political parties, Thackeray said leaders were prioritising power struggles at a time when Maharashtra was facing pressing challenges.

"A drought-like situation is emerging in Maharashtra and several parts of the country, yet political leaders are busy poaching MPs, MLAs and corporators. Unlimited money is being spent solely to gain and retain power, and people are being traded like commodities," he said.

Addressing voters directly, Thackeray questioned how long citizens would continue to tolerate elected representatives changing allegiances after securing public mandates.

“People stand for hours in intense heat to cast their votes, but the leaders they elect later switch sides for Rs 50 crore to Rs 100 crore. Will citizens vote for such people again? Today, the value of your vote has been reduced to zero,” he said.

The MNS chief also accused the ruling establishment of ignoring critical social and economic concerns while focusing on engineering political defections.

Highlighting issues such as farmer and student suicides, he said the country was facing a series of urgent challenges that demanded immediate intervention.

“Look at the condition of our youth. Competitive examinations like NEET are witnessing repeated question paper leaks. We had opposed the central implementation of NEET from the beginning,” he said.

Thackeray further alleged that while politicians were being shifted to luxury resorts to prevent defections, serious crimes such as human trafficking and the exploitation of women and children were increasing across the country.

“When such massive challenges confront the nation, hundreds of crores of rupees are still being spent on breaking opposition parties,” he alleged.

While praising MNS workers for their agitations and public outreach programmes, Thackeray admitted that the party had struggled to convert public support into electoral success.

“Our workers actively take to the streets and lead impactful protests. The message reaches people, but unfortunately that anger does not always translate into votes,” he observed.

He urged party functionaries to strengthen booth-level organisation and closely monitor electoral rolls, emphasising that political power could only be achieved through meticulous groundwork.

Thackeray also pointed to electoral developments in states such as Bihar and West Bengal as examples of the growing importance of professional election management.

Concluding his address, he warned that weaknesses in voter list management were costing the party valuable opportunities.

“Everyone aspires to become an MLA, MP or corporator, but negligence regarding voter lists costs us five years at a time. If we truly want to build a Maharashtra that the world admires, we must first secure political power through strong grassroots organisation,” he said.