“Congress Has Shown Them Their Place”: Fadnavis & Shinde Target Uddhav Over Back-Row Seat at Rahul Gandhi Dinner, Thackerays Hit Back

Mumbai: A fresh political storm has erupted in Maharashtra after photographs from a dinner meeting hosted by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi sparked a war of words between the BJP, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, and the Uddhav Thackeray faction.

The images, which surfaced from the event where Gandhi accused the Election Commission of voter fraud, showed Uddhav Thackeray, Aaditya Thackeray, and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut seated in the last row — a placement that BJP leaders were quick to label as “humiliating treatment” by Congress towards its ally.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis slammed Uddhav, recalling the days when the undivided Shiv Sena was part of the NDA. “When Shiv Sena was in NDA, Uddhav ji always sat in the front row. For us, his respect always came before ours. Uddhav used to say he will not bow before Delhi. See the situation now,” Fadnavis remarked.

Echoing the criticism, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde sharpened the attack, accusing Uddhav of betraying the ideology of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray. “Abandoning Balasaheb’s ideals has cost him his self-respect. Congress has shown them their place,” Shinde declared. The BJP’s Maharashtra unit even shared a screenshot from the dinner with the caption: “Find self-respect in this picture!”

In a fiery rebuttal, Sanjay Raut dismissed the allegations as baseless, explaining the seating arrangement. “We were sitting in the front, but the TV screen was hurting our eyes, so we moved to the back. Look at the other pictures of Uddhav ji. Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi showed him and his family their home,” Raut said.

Aaditya Thackeray also struck back at Shinde, taking a veiled jab. “Some people jostle to sit in the front row. It was a homely environment during the meeting. It is our decision where to sit. What has actually irked them is that the Election Commission runs from their office, which was exposed by Rahul Gandhi,” Aaditya asserted.

NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule ridiculed the controversy, saying it was blown out of proportion. “It was an informal get-together. Pawar saheb was also seated at the back, and Akhilesh Yadav was in the second row. It wasn’t a protocol event, people sat wherever they found space. Do you always sit in the front row at a cinema?” she quipped.