Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Friday criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over its nationwide ‘Save Democracy’ marches, questioning the ruling party’s commitment to democratic principles in the wake of the controversy surrounding the Kolhapur District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union, popularly known as Gokul Dairy.
Thackeray accused the BJP of holding protests to defend democracy while allegedly using government decisions to influence the outcome of local cooperative elections. He pointed to the recent Gokul Dairy board elections, in which the panel backed by Congress leader Satej Patil won 13 of the 25 seats, while the Mahayuti-backed panel secured 12.
Raj Thackeray questions BJP’s democratic credentials
In a statement, Thackeray questioned why a party in power at multiple levels was organising marches against the opposition in the name of saving democracy.
“The Bharatiya Janata Party is a truly bizarre party. Even though it is in power from top to bottom, it is still taking out marches to ‘save democracy’. This must be the only example in the world where the ruling party takes out a march against the opposition,” he said.
Taking a sarcastic swipe at the campaign, he compared the BJP’s appeal to save democracy with the “iconic KFC logo mascot campaigning to save chickens”. He also accused the party of continuing to behave like an opposition party despite being in power for more than a decade.
Gokul appointments trigger criticism
Thackeray cited the Gokul Dairy election results to question the government’s decision to amend provisions governing appointments to cooperative institutions.
The Maharashtra Cabinet approved an amendment allowing five government-nominated members on the boards of cooperative institutions with an annual turnover exceeding Rs 500 crore. Four of these nominees will have voting rights, while the fifth will be a government representative without voting rights.
Thackeray questioned the timing of the decision, alleging that it could undermine the mandate delivered by Gokul’s elected directors.
“If you truly have such a strong desire to preserve the roots of democracy, then in the Gokul case, after your BJP panel’s 12 members lost to Satyajit Patil’s panel’s 13 members getting elected, why did you immediately appoint 5 directors from the Maharashtra government and give them voting rights? What exactly are you trying to prove with that?” he asked.
He alleged that the government was attempting to influence control of the dairy through administrative intervention after the Mahayuti-backed panel failed to secure a majority in the election.
Thackeray takes swipe at BJP over governance
The MNS chief also criticised the BJP over what he described as a gap between its political messaging and governance record.
“Right now in Maharashtra, there’s a severe drought of water and a severe drought of common sense in the Bharatiya Janata Party happening at the same time — it’s astonishing how that can occur!” he said.
Thackeray further alleged that the BJP organised protests to deflect attention from its own governance failures, citing campaigns on terrorism and the economy as examples.
He urged the ruling party to accept electoral setbacks rather than portray itself as a victim.
“The Bharatiya Janata Party should stop playing the pity card. Whichever path you took to gain that majority, all the opposition parties endured it for 12 years — so now, if the people of this country are starting to lean toward the opposition parties, the BJP should learn to endure it as well,” he said.
Satej Patil announces November 9 protest march
The controversy has also prompted Congress leader Satej Patil to announce a protest march in Kolhapur on November 9. The march will begin at Dasara Chowk and proceed to the district collector’s office.
Patil has alleged that the government’s decision to appoint nominated directors is an attempt to take control of Gokul despite his panel winning the election. He has also announced that his side will continue its legal challenge to the decision.
Hasan Mushrif defends government’s decision
Maharashtra minister Hasan Mushrif defended the government’s move, saying it was intended to resolve the deadlock over the election of Gokul’s chairman and prevent the appointment of an administrator.
Mushrif said Gokul’s bylaws require a quorum of 14 directors to elect the chairman. Since the Mahayuti-backed panel’s 12 directors did not attend the earlier meeting, the required quorum could not be met.
He argued that repeated failure to convene the meeting could lead to the appointment of an administrator and fresh elections. The government, he said, had intervened to ensure that the cooperative remained under the control of its elected representatives rather than an administrator.
(With inputs from IANS)
