21 October,2026 07:36 AM IST | Mumbai | Ranjeet Jadhav
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray addresses party workers at the party’s Dussehra rally at Shivaji Park in Dadar on Tuesday
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday challenged the ruling government to hold elections using ballot papers, alleging irregularities in the electoral process, as he addressed the party's 60th Dussehra rally at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Park in Dadar.
Thackeray also criticised the government over farmers' loan waivers, questioned the Mumbai Police's response to the attack on Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff and took aim at the labelling of young protesters as "Urban Naxals", "Dimagi Naxals" and "cockroaches". An effigy of Ravan symbolising alleged "vote chori" was set ablaze after the rally.
Thackeray renewed his demand for elections to be conducted using ballot papers, challenging the government to do so if it had the courage.
Questioning the alleged deletion of voters' names from electoral rolls, he said, "The voting rights of 13 crore people have been taken away across the country. Are the 13 crore people whose names have been deleted from the electoral rolls Bangladeshis?"
He also praised Abhijeet Dipke, chief of the Cockroach Janta Party, and reiterated his support for him. Thackeray criticised the government for allegedly describing Gen Z and young people protesting on the streets as "Urban Naxals", "Dimagi Naxals" and "cockroaches".
Referring to the attack on actor Tiger Shroff, Thackeray questioned the Mumbai Police's security measures and the effectiveness of nakabandis.
"The police caught the culprits in record time. I don't know if I should praise the police. I would have praised them if they had shot down the assailants before the attack. What is the police doing? What is the use of conducting nakabandis?" he asked.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray addresses party workers at the party's Dussehra rally at Shivaji Park in Dadar on Tuesday
Thackeray also targeted the government over gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, who is lodged in Sabarmati jail in Gujarat. "Bishnoi is sitting in Sabarmati jail and eating fafda. If Devendra Fadnavis has the guts, he should go to Sabarmati and bring Bishnoi to Maharashtra," he said.
The rally drew supporters from across Maharashtra, with party workers raising slogans in support of Uddhav Thackeray and Aaditya Thackeray. For many, the annual gathering remains a political tradition.
Shiv Sena held its first Dussehra rally at Shivaji Park on October 30, 1966, around four months after the party was founded. The rally was initially scheduled for October 23 but was postponed by a week.
The party split in June 2022, after which Eknath Shinde began holding a separate Dussehra rally. On Tuesday, Shinde addressed his faction's gathering at the NESCO Exhibition Centre in Goregaon, while Thackeray addressed supporters at Shivaji Park.
Thackeray accused the government of making announcements without ensuring that farmers received relief for crop losses caused by rain. "This is the worst government. The ruling dispensation is busy making announcements. Last year, the chief minister announced a loan waiver for crop losses caused by rain, but how many farmers actually received the relief?
Now, they are offering farmers Rs 5000 under the loan waiver scheme. The government should not think it is doing farmers a favour," he said. The specific scheme, the Rs 5000 payment and the status of last year's relief require verification against official government records.
Machavrao Kadam ,75, who travelled from Jalna in Marathwada
'I have been coming to Shivaji Park for the past 35 years. Earlier, it was Balasaheb who would roar from this historic venue, and now Uddhav Saheb is carrying forward his legacy. This is the real Shiv Sena, where people come of their own will. We will stand by Uddhav Saheb until our last breath because he is fighting for the people'
Harichandra Gopal Kedari, 65, who travelled from Lonavala with five others
'I have been attending the original Dussehra rally for nearly 35 years. For us, it has become a tradition to come here every year. I have come with five others, and our only intention is to listen to our leader, who leads the original Shiv Sena'
