Mumbai, April 21 (IANS) The Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) on Tuesday launched a sharp attack on the BJP-led MahaYuti government, accusing it of being “high on lies” and ignoring the growing drug menace in Maharashtra, especially Mumbai.

In a scathing editorial in its mouthpiece, Saamana, the Thackeray-led party alleged that Maharashtra has emerged as the centre of the country’s biggest drug racket, while the government has chosen to remain a “mute spectator”.

“Five thousand ecstasy pills worth six crore rupees were seized in Titwala, Thane district. At a ‘musical chaos’ event at Nesco in Goregaon, youth openly consumed drugs; two young men died due to an overdose. Previously, Mumbai police raided a factory manufacturing drug pills near Dare village in Satara. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis suppressed the Satara case after the factory’s links to several political leaders were exposed,” said the editorial.

Amidst this “open trade” of narcotics, the editorial also points to cases of sexual exploitation of women by individuals associated with the BJP ideologies, calling it a stain on the state’s prestige.

The editorial shifts focus to the recent defeat of the Delimitation Bill in the Lok Sabha. It characterises the BJP’s reaction as a “heart-wrenching outcry”, questioning how the party can claim the “female power” (Nari Shakti) bill has been “murdered” when the Women’s Reservation Bill was already legally enacted years ago.

“The Women’s Reservation Bill was passed in September 2023 with 454 votes and received presidential assent. The Conflict: On April 16, 2026, the central government issued a notification converting the Women’s Reservation Bill into law. The Delimitation Bill was a ‘deceptive’ attempt to reduce Lok Sabha seats in Southern states while increasing them in Northern India to secure a permanent hold on power,” claimed the Thackeray camp.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena claimed that the BJP leadership is either under the influence of their own rhetoric — terming it “Udta BJP” — or suffering from poor mental health for failing to accept the reality of the bill’s defeat.

“To accept the truth requires courage; to lie requires deceit. The BJP is lying from top to bottom,” it remarked.

The editorial concludes by noting that the current dispute over women’s reservation is merely a spark before a larger internal explosion within the BJP. Looking at this whole scenario, only one thing is visible: the BJP’s brain is still at a “foetal” stage. Discussion can be held with it once it is fully developed!

–IANS

sj/skp