Maharashtra’s political discourse plunged to a new low this week as BJP MP Nishikant Dubey and MNS chief Raj Thackeray traded open threats, transforming a regional issue into a national spectacle.
The verbal slugfest began when Dubey, during a public speech, declared, “Patak patak ke maarenge,” aimed squarely at Raj Thackeray — a pointed response to the MNS’s historical targeting of North Indian migrants in Maharashtra.
Thackeray fired back at a Mumbai rally, saying, “Dubey, tum Mumbai me aajao, Mumbai ke samundar mein dubo dubo ke maarenge,” reigniting the volatile debate over Marathi identity versus migrant influence in the state.
This isn’t the first time Thackeray has fanned linguistic and cultural tensions. The MNS’s aggressive stance on Marathi pride famously made headlines during the 2008 attacks on North Indian candidates at railway recruitment centers in Mumbai.
The timing of the exchange is politically charged. With the BMC elections around the corner, Dubey’s statement appears to be a strategic move to consolidate the BJP’s support among North Indian migrant voters, while the MNS is doubling down on its core Marathi base.
Social media erupted in response. Influencer Ajeet Bharti quipped on X, “फिर भी, ‘पटक पटक के मारने’ का आनंद ‘डुबो-डुबो के मारने’ से कहीं अधिक ही है,” mocking the performative nature of such political machismo.
As Maharashtra braces for high-stakes polls, the Dubey-Thackeray war of words highlights how identity politics continues to dominate public discourse, often at the cost of civility.
