Eknath Shinde accuses Uddhav Thackeray of neglecting flood-hit farmers in Marathwada

Eknath Shinde (right) dismissed Uddhav Thackeray’s recent call for a ‘votebandi’ (voting ban) against Mahayuti allies. File Pic

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday criticised Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, alleging that his visit to flood-affected farmers in the Marathwada region was reluctant and lacked any real assistance, news agency PTI reported.

While speaking at a rally in Parbhani, Shinde claimed that Thackeray, during his tenure as chief minister, "failed to deliver meaningful benefits to common people".

"Leaders like him have started touring only after I gave an ‘injection'. If you have nothing to offer, why meet the farmers? You could have at least taken a few biscuit packets. A true leader stands with the people in times of distress," Shinde remarked, referring to Thackeray's recent visit to Marathwada to meet distressed farmers.

The Marathwada region has faced severe crop and property losses due to prolonged rains during the monsoon season. Shinde said his faction of Shiv Sena had extended timely help to affected farmers.

"We reached farmers' doorsteps. Uddhav never met common people when he was CM. Now, he is defaming the government even though he offered no help to farmers when in power," Shinde said, according to PTI.

He reaffirmed that the Mahayuti government remains committed to farmer welfare, highlighting a Rs 32,000 crore relief package and other measures such as loan waivers.

Shinde also dismissed Thackeray's recent call for a ‘votebandi' (voting ban) against Mahayuti allies in upcoming local body elections, calling it "political drama", PTI reported.

Criticising the opposition, he said, "Congress was involved in several scams before 2014. It was the NDA government that truly set India on the path of development. We are not scamsters, we are taking Maharashtra forward."

Shiv Sena vs Shiv Sena: Supreme Court to begin final hearing on January 21

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said that it will start the final hearing on January 21, 2026, in the ongoing dispute between the Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde factions of the Shiv Sena.

The hearing is scheduled on petitions filed by the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction of the Shiv Sena challenging the Election Commission's order that allotted the party's traditional ‘bow and arrow' symbol to the faction led by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi announced that arguments in the Shiv Sena symbol dispute would commence on 21 January, followed by a hearing on a related case involving the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on 22 January, as both matters raise similar constitutional questions.

The court has allocated three hours of argument time for each faction involved in the two cases.

(With PTI inputs)