"Usually, Patil has been known to make a blunder before speaking or later. But in the present instance, by his truthful utterances, he has echoed the feelings of the people of the state," Thackeray said in an editorial Friday in the party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.

Thackeray's reference was to this week's state cabinet meeting in which Patil urged Pawar, who also holds the energy portfolio, to ensure that the poor tribals of Gadchiroli district were not subjected to power cuts on the occasion of Diwali.