Aditya Thackeray is Uddhav Shiv Sena’s “Abhishek Banerjee”

BJP leader and Maharashtra government minister Nitesh Rane, while targeting the Uddhav Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena, said that just as dissatisfaction and splits were seen in the Trinamool Congress because of Abhishek Banerjee, the same is the condition of Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena because of Aditya Thackeray. Rane remarked that Aditya Thackeray is the “Abhishek Banerjee” of UBT Shiv Sena. Taking a jibe, Rane said that just as Abhishek Banerjee has to move around wearing a helmet, he is also sending a helmet as a gift to Aditya Thackeray, because no one knows when and from where slippers or eggs might come flying.

Rane said that this is the reason why MPs chose the path of rebellion. Referring to Balasaheb Thackeray, he said that Balasaheb’s clear view was that if Shiv Sena ever went with the Congress, he would “shut down his shop.” According to Rane, many MPs have rebelled against the UBT leadership because they remain committed to Balasaheb’s ideology.
(UPDATED ON 19TH JUNE 2026)