Mumbai, June 16 (IANS) The Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray (UBT) on Tuesday claimed that there was an alarming “downfall” of India’s democratic and political systems amid engineered defections, alleged EVM destruction, institutional silence and public distractions, which were signs of an authoritarian shift.

The Thackeray camp, in an editorial in the party’s mouthpiece, ‘Saamana’, said the news of defecting MLAs and MPs has completely consumed India’s television channels and newspapers. While the burning down of four thousand Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) received zero debate on news channels, an MP missing a Shiv Sena meeting was sensationalised into a topic of national discussion. This is precisely what happens across the globe under dictatorial regimes: new controversies are manufactured daily to divert public attention from fundamental issues.

The party accused the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of becoming a “thief market of rumours”. “The harvest of rumours originating from this market is what they define as development. They have recently floated a rumour claiming that ‘Prime Minister Modi is the longest-serving Prime Minister’. However, they remained absolutely tight-lipped about the reality — not a rumour — that five crore rupees were embezzled from the Ayodhya Ram Temple,” it said.

“Furthermore, Prime Minister Modi failed to express even basic grief over the deaths of three Indian sailors killed in a US attack. Instead, he departed for a tour of France, immersing himself in dance and musical celebrations, while the bodies of those sailors lie rotting at a port in Oman. This desecration of the mortal remains of Indian citizens is deeply concerning,” it remarked.

The editorial argued that while these tragedies unfold, the BJP continues its relentless campaign of poaching MLAs and MPs from other political parties. BJP appears determined not to leave even a trace of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), founded by Mamata Banerjee. Consequently, TMC MLAs and MPs are defecting daily.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena alleged that the ruling dispensations showed no signs of stopping their arrogant onslaught to split opposition parties. “The BJP and its henchmen have begun bragging: ‘We broke the Trinamool, and now we will break the Shiv Sena again’. They are calling this ‘Operation Tiger’. In reality, a regime of cunning wolves is running the country and the state of Maharashtra, yet they boast about executing an Operation Tiger,” it commented.

The editorial said that during the BJP rule, the Speakers of the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies are effectively rolling up the Tenth Schedule and tossing it into the fireplace. Defectors openly march up to the Speaker’s doorstep, declaring, “We have split, give us recognition”, and the Speakers are seen openly participating in these illegal acts. Even the Election Commission and the Supreme Court appear to be functioning as protectors of the treacherous.

The Thackeray camp claimed that the BJP intends to impose single-party rule over the country. Their ultimate goal is to end democracy, alter the Constitution, and usher in a presidential system draped in dictatorship. “They aim to wipe out regional parties across states and destroy the country’s diverse political culture — and the process has already begun. This implies that, moving forward, elections will cease to exist, and a President will directly appoint their own cabinet. The country is rapidly heading towards this system of governance,” it noted.

“As the government maintains a calculated silence on pressing domestic crises — including severe inflation, exam paper leaks, rising unemployment, the crashing value of the rupee, and atrocities against women — the nation’s political landscape continues to be dominated by engineered political defections sold under the guise of development,” said the Thackeray camp.

–IANS

sj/dpb