Addressing a rally in Thane on 18 July, Thackeray alleged that Gujarati leaders, including Patel and Desai, attempted to detach Mumbai from Maharashtra. He also cited the historic incident where Morarji Desai ordered police firing on Marathi activists during the Samyukta Maharashtra movement. Thackeray dismissed national concern over migrant mistreatment in Gujarat as muted compared with similar issues in Maharashtra.
Gujarat’s newly appointed Congress president Amit Chavda criticised Thackeray, saying “speaking against Sardar Saheb is like throwing dust in front of the sun,” and warned that political repercussions would follow should Thackeray persist. AAP’s state president Isudan Gadhvi accused Thackeray of targeting Gujarati pride and urged Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and BJP state president C. R. Paatil to take legal action.
Patidar leaders have also taken a firm stance. Manoj Panara has petitioned police in Morbi seeking sedition charges and a ban on Thackeray’s Gujarat visits, stating: “We strongly condemn the comments he made about Sardar Saheb and former PM Morarji Desai”. Alpesh Kathiria described the remarks as an insult to national icons, while Lalji Patel, head of the Sardar Patel Group, said Thackeray would never be embraced as a national figure unless he amends his divisive views.
Adding to the condemnation, BJP MP Mukesh Dalal in Surat said Thackeray lacked credibility, asserting he was “not even the dust of Sardar Patel’s feet,” warning that Gujaratis would not tolerate such comments.
The controversy unfolds amid MNS-led demands in Maharashtra that non-Marathi residents learn the language, a campaign that has at times escalated into attacks on shopkeepers and migrants for not speaking Marathi. Thackeray’s comments are viewed by critics as part of a broader regionalist strategy intended to bolster his political relevance ahead of municipal polls in Mumbai.
This row has entered the courts and public discourse. Opposition parties are planning legal moves, including FIRs and sedition complaints, to bar Thackeray from entering Gujarat. Meanwhile, the BJP state leadership faces questions on whether it will support action against him. Journalists note this marks a rare instance where Gujarat’s mainstream parties appear united against a leader from Maharashtra.
Legal experts suggest Thackeray’s remarks, invoking allegations of anti-Marathi sentiment by national figures, could provoke petitions under sedition or hate speech codes. Any FIR and subsequent ban could hinge on whether the statements are deemed to incite enmity between states or communities. The Gujarat government is likely to face petitions from Patidar groups, whose influence remains politically significant.
This episode underscores the intensifying regional fault lines in Indian politics. While Thackeray attempts to rally support in Maharashtra through linguistic and cultural assertions, his strategy is provoking sharp rebukes beyond state borders. If Gujarat's authorities pursue legal avenues, this confrontation could redefine inter-state political dynamics, with both short-term electoral consequences and long-term implications for cross-border political rhetoric.