PoliticsMaharashtra
Fadnavis tells Uddhav he could not stop a 'regime change' in his own Shiv Sena
Answering the Sena (UBT) chief's backing for talk of regime change, the Maharashtra chief minister said governments in India change through elections, not on the streets.
Key points
- Devendra Fadnavis said Uddhav Thackeray could not prevent a regime change within his own Shiv Sena.
- He said decisions are taken in Parliament and by the Constitution, not on the streets.
- Uddhav had said on Saturday a government that takes away the right to vote and protest should be overthrown.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday hit back at Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray for endorsing talk of regime change, mocking him over the split in his own party.
“Uddhav Thackeray could not prevent a regime change within his own Shiv Sena,” Fadnavis told reporters in Nagpur. He said that after the party “abandoned Hindutva”, those who wanted to follow Balasaheb Thackeray’s principles had formed the real Shiv Sena.
Thackeray said in Mumbai on Saturday that a government that takes away people’s right to express themselves through elections and protest should be thrown out. The phrase “regime change” has come up during the protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, with senior advocate Prashant Bhushan, AISA president Neha Bora and Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera among those who have used or discussed it in Delhi.
“Stop fighting against the Constitution of India,” Fadnavis said. “Decisions in this country will be taken in Parliament and in accordance with the Constitution, not on the streets. In a democracy, governments are decided through elections.”
“If you want a regime change, you must contest elections, win the hearts of the people and secure an electoral victory,” he said. “Today, Narendra Modi’s government is in power, and it will be elected again.”
Pointing to Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan, he said those seeking to change governments outside the Constitution “will never succeed in their intentions”, and credited the Constitution drafted under B R Ambedkar for defeating such attempts.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has made a similar charge, telling a press conference in Lucknow: “Regime change is being pursued on the lines of Bangladesh.”