Raj Thackeray, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief, has emerged as Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) basher-in-chief as the election caravan trundles on, with Mumbai set to vote on Monday, April 29. For some, though, Raj's attacks are seen as a desperate gambit by a floundering party to have a voice on the national political stage.

MNS general secretary Shalini Thackeray, laughed off the term "desperate gambit". "What do you mean by desperate for national attention? Raj Thackeray had declared earlier, too, that the MNS will not be contesting the Lok Sabha elections. We will be concentrating on the Vidhan Sabha elections," she shot back.