‘Have Police Personnel Been Brought To Delhi To Play Dandiya?’: Uddhav Thackeray Backs ‘Regime Change’ Call

Uddhav Thackeray, chief of the Shiv Sena (UBT), endorsed activist Prashant Bhushan's call for "regime change" in response to protests against the Election Commission, suggesting that a government that uses force against protesters should be replaced. Addressing an awards ceremony by the Akhil Bharatiya Patrakar Parishad, Thackeray questioned whether the government had deployed thousands of police to Delhi for a dandiya dance during Navratri.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis accused opposition parties of seeking regime change through strikes, stating their aim was to topple the Modi government. Thackeray alleged that police were forcefully detaining youth and women, damaging their clothing and forcing their removal. He called for the end of such a regime and vowed to "bury" it.

Thackeray also mocked the Bharatiya Janata Party over plans to burn a cockroach effigy alongside a Raavan effigy at a Dussehra event in Delhi, implying opposition to the Cockroach Janta Party. He remarked that those who claimed to bring Lord Ram were afraid of a cockroach. Thackeray planned to deliver a speech at the Shiv Sena's Dussehra rally in Dadar on October 20, while the Sena led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde would hold its rally at NESCO ground in Goregaon.