Overview

• Speaking in Pune a day after a rain-soaked Shivaji Park turnout, Thackeray accused the BJP of dividing society and steering India toward dictatorship.
• He said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis looks helpless despite a large majority and has failed to act against what he called rampant corruption.
• Calling for immediate relief, he demanded a full crop loan waiver and Rs 50,000 per hectare compensation, and urged the Centre to extend Bihar-style Rs 10,000 support to women in Maharashtra.
• He defended his party’s progressive Hindutva and charged the BJP with double standards on interfaith relationships, contrasting “immortal love” with “love jihad.”
• Signalling a recalibrated local-body strategy, he said MVA seat-sharing should reflect local factors and sentiments, while also backing Sonam Wangchuk and publicly rebuking Ramdas Kadam over his remarks on Bal Thackeray.