Mumbai, July 23: In a joint press conference, Shiv Sena (UBT) Chief Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) President Raj Thackeray on Thursday came together to sharply criticise the NDA government at the Centre over the ongoing NEET exam paper leak controversy and the police action against protesting students in Delhi. They also announced a joint protest march on July 26.

Announcing the major political and social mobilisation, both leaders declared that they will lead a massive non-partisan protest march in Mumbai on Sunday, July 26, starting from Shivaji Park (Shivtirtha) to the Siddhivinayak Temple.

Drawing parallels to past political resignations — including former Maharashtra Home Minister R.R. Patil’s exit following the 26/11 attacks — Raj Thackeray asserted that accountability must start at the top.

He stated that the issue has crossed Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and now directly reaches Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Raj Thackeray condemned the Centre’s refusal to hold dialogue with protestors, citing previous instances like the farmers’ agitation, the Manipur crisis, and the Ladakh protests.

“Farmers were dying earlier; now students will be forced to commit suicide. What kind of arrogance of power is this that the administration refuses to listen to anyone?” he asked.

He noted that had the NDA government initiated talks with the students over the NEET paper leaks, the hunger strike by educator and innovator Sonam Wangchuk and the protest by the Cockroach Janata Party would not have happened.

Promising a peaceful protest, Raj Thackeray warned that if any attempt is made to infiltrate or disrupt their rally like in New Delhi, their supporters would take strict action.

Uddhav Thackeray condemned the police action against student protestors in Delhi, alleging that young women were beaten with nail-embedded batons and had their clothes torn.

He questioned how individuals in civil attire were handed police batons to suppress the agitation.

Expressing deep frustration over the response from the judiciary, Uddhav Thackeray stated that the courts seem to have time for minor issues like stray animals and pigeons, but fail to deliver timely justice to students facing severe state pressure.

Calling the current administration “merciless,” he urged citizens and political leaders across the board to stand up for the country’s youth.

Both Uddhav and Raj Thackeray stressed that the rally will carry no political party flags— only the Indian National Flag will be displayed. They said the students, parents, Opposition leaders (including MVA allies) and any citizens concerned with the students’ future can participate in Sunday’s march.

MUMBAI PRESS BUREAU
July 15, 2026
DELHI — In a major administrative development, the Lieutenant Governor of the National Capital Territory of Delhi has officially conferred special detaining authority powers upon the Commissioner of Police, Delhi, under the National Security Act (NSA), 1980.
According to an official notification issued by the Home (Police-II) Department of the Delhi Gazette Extraordinary on July 15, 2026, Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena exercised powers conferred by sub-section (3) of section 3, read with clause (e) of Section 2 of the National Security Act, 1980, after expressing satisfaction that such a measure is necessary.
NOTIFICATION DETAILS AT A GLANCE:
Gazette: Delhi Gazette: Extraordinary (Part IV)
Order No: F.No. 2/1/88/HP-II/Pt.-I/ e-Office No.280430/1346-1349
Issuing Authority: By Order & Name of Lt. Governor (Ramesh Kumar, Dy. Secy. Home-III)
Date of Issue: July 15, 2026
Effective Period: July 19, 2026 to October 18, 2026

Three-Month Special Provision
The issued notification directs that for a period of three months—from July 19, 2026, to October 18, 2026—the Commissioner of Police, Delhi, is authorized to exercise the powers of a detaining authority under sub-section (2) of Section 3 of the National Security Act, 1980. “The Lt. Governor of the National Capital Territory of Delhi is satisfied that it is necessary to do so… during the period 19/07/2026 to 18/10/2026 the Commissioner of Police, Delhi may also exercise the powers of detaining authority under sub section (2) of the section 3 of the aforesaid Act.” Extract from the Delhi Gazette Order

Background and Significance
Under the National Security Act, 1980, a person can be detained to prevent them from acting in any manner prejudicial to the defense of India, the relations of India with foreign powers, the security of India, or the maintenance of public order and essential services.
While detaining powers under Section 3 typically rest with District Magistrates or State Governments, the provisions allow the Lt. Governor or State Government to temporarily delegate these preventive detention powers directly to the chief of police in metropolitan regions to handle law and order effectively. The standard practice in the national capital involves periodic updates to these powers to maintain administrative preparedness and public safety.

Mumbai, July 23: The Shiv Sena (UBT) on Thursday launched a scathing attack on the Centre, accusing it of patronising big corporate loan defaulters while enforcing harsh recovery mechanisms on poor and middle-class citizens.

In an editorial in its mouthpiece, ‘Saamana’, the party said as per the official data provided by the Union Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha, public sector banks have written off bad loans totaling Rs 7.75 lakh crore across 1,249 accounts (each owing Rs 100 crore or more) between FY 2014-15 and FY 2025-26. Out of the massive defaults, banks have managed to recover a mere Rs 3.10 lakh crore so far.

While the government argued in Parliament that writing off loans is standard technical accounting for non-recoverable debts and does not equate to a total loan waiver, the editorial termed this defence shocking and hypocritical. “All of this is deeply shocking. Ever since coming to power, the Modi government has continuously beaten its chest about bringing financial discipline to the banking system. So, under what definition of ‘financial discipline’ does it fall to simply transfer unrecovered loans into bad debt accounts instead of enforcing recovery while big industrialists pull off such massive heists on banks?” asked the Thackeray camp.

“Taking massive loans, repaying a tiny fraction, and defaulting on the rest seems to have received official state sanction,” the editorial noted, labelling the current era an “Amrit Kaal of Default”. It further commented, “An ‘Amrit Kaal of Loan Defaulting’ has commenced in the country, where poor ‘cockroaches’ must tighten their belts to pay off their loan instalments, while wealthy billionaires get to bankrupt the banks. If the government itself is complicit, who is going to stop these robbers from looting public money?”

A major point of contention highlighted in the editorial is the government’s refusal to publicly disclose the names of these top corporate defaulters. The government cited Section 45E of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Act, which mandates confidentiality regarding credit information, as the reason for withholding the identities.

The editorial vehemently questioned this rationale. “Why are the names of small default borrowers publicly advertised in newspapers, while billionaire defaulters are shielded behind confidentiality clauses? Why are properties, vehicles, and homes of middle-class citizens, small business owners, and farmers seized or sealed over tiny defaults, while big corporate tycoons face no such action?”

The Thackeray camp questioned whether these defaulting tycoons are major donors to the ruling party, alleging an unspoken policy of “Give donations, get loan write-offs”.

Sharply contrasting the plight of the common citizen with wealthy industrialists, the editorial claimed that while ordinary taxpayers squeeze their tight budgets to pay off micro-loans, wealthy billionaires are permitted to loot state banks with impunity.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena remarked that the open plunder of public sector banks is taking place through collusion between “fraudsters in industry and big fraudsters in government”. It warned that if the state itself shields such elements, public money remains dangerously unsecured.