Maharashtra Election 2024: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday invoked late Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray during her campaign for the Maharashtra assembly elections, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of contradicting her own words. Priyanka’s comments follow Modi’s challenge to the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), asking Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to praise Bal Thackeray and Veer Savarkar.

“Modi comes here and talks about Balasaheb Thackeray, but stabs his son in the back,” Priyanka said, referring to the toppling of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in 2022, which saw Uddhav Thackeray ousted as minister in leader of Maharashtra.

नरेंद्र मोदी, यहां आकर बालासाहेब ठाकरे जी की बात करते हैं और उन्हीं के बेटे की पीठ में छुरा घोंप देते हैं।

: @priyankagandhi जी

कोल्हापुर, महाराष्ट्र pic.twitter.com/KgBBGfNVAS

– Congress (@INCIndia) November 16, 2024

Priyanka’s rare reference to Thackeray came at a time when Union Minister Amit Shah had challenged Rahul Gandhi to speak “kindly” about Bal Thackeray and Veer Savarkar at a rally in Hingoli on Friday, before the November 20 elections. targeting Uddhav Thackeray, asking him to convince Rahul Gandhi to congratulate the two leaders.

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“Different ideologies but…”: Priyanka Gandhi responds to PM Modi’s Bal Thackeray challenge to Rahul Gandhi

Speaking at rallies in Shirdi and Kolhapur, the Congress leader also accused BJP leaders of insulting Shivaji Maharaj, referring to the collapse of a statue of the warrior king in Sindhudurg district earlier this year. “The statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in front of Parliament has been removed. The statue installed in Sindhudurg collapsed due to corruption during its construction. What is the point of invoking the name of this legendary king if you want insult him?” she said.

#WATCH Name, महाराष्ट्र: कांग्रेस महासचिव प्रियंका गांधी वाड्रा ने कहा, “पिछले 10 सालों में पीएम मोदी के राज में, भाजपा के राज में ओ जो सरकार रही है उसके राज में सच्चाई की अहमियत … देते हैं… आज मुझे ताज्जुब… pic.twitter.com/Ybx5d5974P

– ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) November 16, 2024

Further criticizing the BJP, Priyanka highlighted the contradictions within Modi’s leadership. She alleged that even though the Prime Minister often invokes Bal Thackeray’s name, his actions fail to honor Thackeray’s legacy or complete projects like the Shivaji Maharaj memorial near Mumbai. “Modi lays foundation of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue but later stops work. He talks about Balasaheb Thackeray, but when it comes to completing the statue of Shivaji Maharaj, he does nothing,” Priyanka said.

She also stressed that neither Bal Thackeray nor Rahul Gandhi would have tolerated any insult to the legendary warrior Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Priyanka said, “The Prime Minister takes the name Balasaheb Thackeray in the context of my brother. I am his sister, listen to the name Balasaheb Thackeray. Yes, our ideologies and political outlooks were different, but neither Balasaheb Thackeray nor any Congress leader, including Rahul Gandhi, would tolerate an insult to Shivaji Maharaj.

In her speech, Priyanka also criticized Modi’s speeches, calling them “disappointing” due to their lack of truth. “If I listen to the speeches of leaders, especially the Prime Minister, they are disappointing because there is no truth in his words. It seems like he says one thing and does another,” she said. Priyanka called on political leaders to speak with integrity, urging Modi and state leaders to focus on positive and truthful rhetoric given their positions.