Maharashtra Assembly Elections 2024 | Checking of bags non-issue, Uddhav is seeking votes by whining: Devendra Fadnavis

Thane: Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray was trying to divert attention by needlessly protesting about the checking of his bags by election officials.

Thackeray's frustration was showing, Fadnavis said, campaigning for the ruling Mahayuti's candidate Sulabha Ganpat Gaikwad in Kalyan East in the district ahead of the November 20 Maharashtra assembly polls.

"What is wrong with checking bags? We had our bags checked during campaigning, and there was no need for this level of frustration," said Fadnavis, stating that election officials followed the same procedures with his campaign team too.

Lacking pressing topics, Thackeray is now "seeking votes by whining", the BJP leader said.

Earlier, for the second consecutive day, Uddhav Thackeray claimed that his bags were inspected by election authorities on Tuesday after he arrived in Latur district to campaign. The former chief minister's party posted a video of the incident on a social media platform.

Fadnavis, meanwhile, also attacked the Opposition's Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition, pointing out that some of its allies moved the high court against the Ladki Bahin Yojana for women.

"When Uddhav Thackeray's government was in power, Maharashtra's industrial sector was lagging behind. But now, under our government, Maharashtra has outpaced Karnataka and Gujarat, securing 52 percent of total industrial investment in the country this year," he said.

Assembly Elections 2024 | The Maharashtra Assembly polls will take place against the backdrop of a fractured political landscape in the western state where the Shiv Sena and NCP will be going up against the Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar factions, even as the BJP and Congress try to make their mark. Meanwhile, in Jharkhand, the JMM faces a new challenge after Hemant Soren's recent arrest and Champai, a longstanding party member, joining the BJP. The Haryana election resulted in a shock loss for Congress, which was looking to galvanize on the Lok Sabha poll performance, while J&K also saw the grand old party eventually stepping away from the cabinet, with Omar Abdullah's JKNC forming government. It remains to be seen if the upcoming polls help BJP cement its position further or provide a fillip to I.N.D.I.A. Check live updates and track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analyses only on Deccan Herald.

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