Maharashtra Lok Sabha Election 2024: People Will Respond to It on April 26, Says CM Eknath Shinde on Uddhav Thackeray's ‘Neech’ Remark

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, on Tuesday, April 23, took a snatching attack at his ex-party colleague Uddhav Thackeray over alleged "neech" remarks, saying "people will respond to it through the ballot box on April 26."

"Yesterday he (Uddhav Thackeray) said that Eknath Shinde is "neech". You abuse me by calling me "neech". If a farmer's son, a common labourer becomes the chief minister then you don't like it, you are unable to digest it."

Buldhana, Maharashtra | CM Eknath Shinde says, "Yesterday he (Uddhav Thackeray) said that Eknath Shinde is "neech". You abuse me by calling me "neech". If a farmer's son, a common labourer becomes the chief minister then you don't like it, you are unable to digest it. If you look… pic.twitter.com/zJ9R1sMjdY

— ANI (@ANI) April 23, 2024

Taking a dig at the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader, CM further stated, "If you look at it, this is not an insult to me, it is an insult to all the farmers' sons, it is an insult to the mothers and sisters of the poor and it is an insult to the society from which I come."

I have faith that the people will respond to it through the ballot box on April 26, he said while appealing to people to vote for his candidate in the Lok Sabha polls.

Later, the CM took to X to attack the father-son duo, saying, 'baap ek number ani beta 10 number ahet' (in Marathi), which means the son is a bigger thief than his father.

उबाठामध्ये ‘बाप १ नंबरी आणि बेटा १० नंबरी’ आहेत. आदित्य ठाकरेने माझा 'नीच' म्हणून उल्लेख केला. एक सर्वसामान्य शेतकऱ्याचा मुलगा मुख्यमंत्री झाला, हे त्यांना सहन झालेले नाही. त्यांनी माझा नाही तर गोरगरिब, शेतकरी माता भगिनी आणि माझ्या समाजाचा अपमान केला आहे. pic.twitter.com/s2b7RuMuTF

— Eknath Shinde - एकनाथ शिंदे (@mieknathshinde) April 23, 2024

"In Ubatha, 'the son is a bigger thief than his father'. Aditya Thackeray referred to me as 'neech' (despicable). He could not bear that the son of a common farmer became the chief minister. They have insulted not me, but the poor, the farmers, mothers and sisters and my community," the post read.

Also Read | Maharashtra Lok Sabha Election 2024: Independent Candidate from Aurangabad Rides On Camel To File Nomination (Watch).

The state, with its 48 Lok Sabha seats, is the second-largest contributor to the lower house of Parliament after Uttar Pradesh. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP won 23 out of 25 contested seats, while the undivided Shiv Sena secured 18 out of 23 seats.

The undivided NCP, part of the opposition alliance, contested 19 seats and won four in 2019 Lok Sabha election. Following the split in the Shiva Sena 2022, the Eknath Shinde faction aligned with the BJP.