Mumbai, Aug 18: Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) on Tuesday launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership, accusing the ruling party of “intellectual bankruptcy” and stirring up unnecessary political controversies surrounding the national song, Vande Mataram.

In a hard-hitting editorial in the party mouthpiece Saamana, the Thackeray camp asserted that the BJP played no historic role in the Indian freedom struggle, national milestones, or iconic slogans such as Vande Mataram and Inquilab Zindabad.

The editorial targeted BJP founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee, noting his involvement in the Muslim League-led Bengal cabinet and accusing him of advocating for the British regime to sternly suppress freedom movements, including the Quit India movement.

The party argued that rather than demanding apologies from political opponents, the BJP should apologise to the nation for historically betraying the freedom movement.

The attack comes amid heightened friction between the Opposition and the central government over parliamentary proceedings.

According to the editorial, the Congress-led Opposition recently disrupted Parliament to demand a statement and an apology from Union Home Minister Amit Shah regarding an alleged pellet gun firing incident at Jantar Mantar.

The editorial claimed that Home Minister Shah evaded the parliamentary session, later labelling the Congress’s stance on Vande Mataram as “intellectual Naxalism” while demanding an apology. “To drag Vande Mataram into political battles and accuse opponents of ‘intellectual Naxalism’ reflects a sheer lack of historical awareness and political desperation,” the editorial stated.

The editorial outlined the song’s deeply rooted legacy within the Indian independence movement to counter the central government’s claims. In the 1896 Kolkata Session, Rabindranath Tagore first sang Vande Mataram at the Kolkata Congress session under the presidency of Rahamatullah M Sayani. When the British colonial government banned the song and arrested those who sang it, it was Congress members and leftists who went to jail to uphold it.

Following advice from Rabindranath Tagore in a letter to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, the Congress Working Committee—including Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Jawaharlal Nehru, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Maulana Azad, Govind Ballabh Pant, and Acharya Kripalani— in 1937 unanimously adopted the first two stanzas of the song. Before Jawaharlal Nehru delivered his landmark Tryst with Destiny speech, Sucheta Kripalani rendered Vande Mataram in the special midnight session of Parliament, said the editorial.

The Thackeray camp also sharply criticised the current administration’s handling of national symbols and institutions.

The editorial accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of shutting down the historic Parliament building—where India’s independence was originally inaugurated—and replacing it with a structure it likened to a “private Gujarati marriage hall.”

Furthermore, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena highlighted that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological progenitor of the BJP, did not hoist the Indian Tricolour at its offices or branches on Independence Day for nearly 50 years post-independence.

Drawing further historical parallels, the editorial recalled Balajipant Natu lowering the Maratha flag to hoist the British Union Jack at Pune’s Shaniwar Wada on November 17, 1817. It noted that it was only on August 15, 1947, that freedom fighter Krantisinh Nana Patil lowered the Union Jack and raised the Tricolour at the historic site amid chants of Vande Mataram.

Invoking past statements by former Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, the editorial emphasised that Vande Mataram should remain above political division, reiterating that freedom fighters and the Congress had consistently embraced the song throughout the independence struggle.

The Mumbai-Milan-Goregaon Link is a major infrastructure project covering 12.20 km connecting the eastern and western suburbs in the area of ​​the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. It is being implemented in four phases. Under the project Phase 3 (B), twin tunnels are being constructed under the Sanjay Gandhi National Park with three lanes each and a length of 5.30 km, connecting Dadasaheb Phalke Film City in Goregaon (East) to Amar Nagar in Milind (West), using the latest tunnel (MachTB) technology. The tunnel excavation work for the GMLR project officially began on Monday, 17 August 2026, with the commissioning of the first tunnel boring unit. The large ‘tunnel boring machine’ deployed for this excavation has been named ‘Tulshi’.

Goregaon-Miland Link Road Project (Phase 3B)
The Milind Goregaon Link Road is a major infrastructure project, measuring 12.20 km in length, connecting the eastern and western suburbs in the Mumbai Municipal Corporation area. The project is being completed in four phases. Under the project Phase 3 (B), twin tunnels, each consisting of three lanes and covering a distance of 5.30 km, are being constructed under the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, connecting Dadasaheb Phalke Chittarnagari in Goregaon (East) to Amar Nagar in Milind (West). The latest Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) technology is being used for this purpose, with special care being taken to ensure that there is no adverse impact on the environment or biodiversity during construction.
The project has 17 cross passages, twin box tunnels spanning 720 metres, and approach roads (600 metres long) in both Goregaon and Mulund, taking the total length of the project to 6.62 km. The contractor is responsible for the operation and maintenance (O&M) of the project for 10 years after completion. Necessary environmental clearances have been obtained from the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change for Phase 1 and 2, and permission for felling of necessary trees has been granted by the Hon’ble Supreme Court. Around 906 project affected persons are being rehabilitated in six buildings in Kanjarmarg, each comprising 23 upper floors in addition to the ground floor. The project incorporates state-of-the-art features, including tunnelling using EPB (Earth Pressure Balance) TBMs, construction of cross passage using NATM (New Austrian Tunnelling Method), mechanical ventilation system, fog-based fire fighting system, CCTV surveillance, LCA DA and modern control system, LCA. Furthermore, utility ducts have been provided under the road inside the twin tunnels. A 1800 mm diameter water pipeline will be laid through each tunnel. M/s Tipsya India Private Limited has been appointed as the Project Management Consultant (PMC), IIT Bombay as the Proof Checking Consultant, and VJTI, Mumbai as the Third Party Quality Auditor for the quality control and monitoring of the project.
Currently, the project has achieved about 21% physical progress. The assembly of TBM-1 has been completed, and the site acceptance test has also been successfully conducted.
The assembly of TBM-2 is underway, with excavation scheduled to begin in October 2026. The target for completion of the entire project is set for February 2029.

Upon completion, the Gurgaon-Miland Link Road project will provide a direct connection between the Western Express Highway and the Eastern Express Highway. This will significantly reduce traffic congestion in the eastern and western suburbs, reducing travel time from about 90 minutes to just 20 minutes. As a result, there will be substantial savings in both time and fuel for commuters. Furthermore, connectivity between the eastern and western suburbs will become more efficient, and response times for emergency services will improve. Commercial and industrial transportation will be accelerated, and by reducing traffic pressure on Mumbai’s existing road network, the project will help significantly increase the overall efficiency of the metropolis’s transport system.

Authorized hawkers on Mumbai sidewalks should operate only within the area specified in their license and should not encroach beyond the prescribed limits. Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide directed the licensing department to inspect the areas occupied by all licensed hawkers. He directed that strict action should be taken against any hawker found operating outside the authorized area. Meanwhile, Bhide expressed satisfaction over the growing public response and cooperation for the ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign currently underway in the Mumbai area. The Mumbai Municipal Corporation is implementing the ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign with an aim to remove obstructions from sidewalks and make them easily accessible for pedestrians. To review the ongoing operations, Ashwini Bhide personally visited and inspected various locations in Mumbai City Division for three hours this morning (17th August 2026). The locations inspected include: Nana Chowk, Grant Road Railway Station, Nausher Bharucha Road, Nana Shankar Shet Marg (Bhaji Gali), and Tardeo Marg in ‘D’ Ward; Dr. Anand Rao Nair Marg, Nair Hospital premises, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marg, Nath Pai Marg, and Sant Savta Marg in ‘E’ Ward; and Lokmanya Tilak Marg, Sindhur Bridge area, Juna Bengalipur Gali, Raghunath Maharaj Street, and Qazi Syed Marg in ‘B’ Ward. The inspection covered the condition and repair status of footpaths in the areas of Jagannath Shankar Shet Marg, Dhubitalav Lane, Maharshi Karve Marg, Marine Lines, and Chandanwadi (all in ‘C’ Ward) as well as Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Mandai (Crawford Market) and Mahapalika Marg. The officials present on the occasion included Deputy Commissioner (Zone-1) Chandra Jadhav, Deputy Commissioner (Commissioner’s Office) Prashant Gaikwad, and Assistant Commissioners Santosh Salunkhe (‘D’ Ward), Anand Kankal (‘E’ Ward), Jitendra Ghorade (‘B’ Ward), Ujjwal Angule (‘A’ Ward), and Sunil Mane (‘C’ Ward).
Ensuring protection of tree roots on footpaths; Proper cutting of branches
The ongoing efforts of the administration to create obstacle-free footpaths are satisfactory. However, continuity should be maintained. Necessary measures should be taken for the improvement, beautification and safety of footpaths. All obstacles should be removed to make footpaths easily navigable for pedestrians, and this change should be clearly visible to the citizens while travelling. Care should be taken to protect the roots of trees on footpaths, and branches should be cut properly. Trees considered unsafe should be removed as per rules and scientific methods. Licensed hawkers working on footpaths should not occupy space outside their designated area. Strict action should be taken against those violating this law. Municipal Commissioner Ms. Ashwini Bhide issued these instructions during an inspection.
No obstacles for pedestrians on footpaths
Meanwhile, during an inspection of the ‘Pedestrian First’ campaign, Ashwini Bhide personally checked the license certificates of some hawkers. Instructions were also issued to the concerned hawkers and representatives of their associations. Authorised hawkers are allowed to do business on the footpath. However, their operations should not obstruct the movement of pedestrians. They should ensure cleanliness in the surrounding areas. Grant Road Railway Station, Jagannath Shankar Shet Metro Station and BYL vicinity were visited. Nair Hospital, Necessary steps were taken with instructions to implement measures to ensure smooth passage of pedestrians
Install CCTV cameras at Garbage Vulnerable Points (GVPs)

Ashwini Bhide visited the dry waste collection centre in ‘E’ ward, the Solid Waste Management Department post on Ray Road, the pumping station on Sant Savta Marg, and various Garbage Vulnerable Points (GVPs) to review the operations.
He directed that signboards giving the message “Do not litter” should be prominently displayed at the GVPs. CCTV cameras should be installed immediately to check the activities of habitual litterers and the surrounding areas should be beautified. He also directed that the dry waste segregation centres should be properly organised and the respective waste bags should be clearly marked with the different types of waste.
Cooperate with the civic administration
The administration is taking necessary steps to clean the footpaths and remove garbage vulnerable points (GVPs). However, citizens should also try to avoid creating obstacles on the footpaths. Material should not be kept on the footpaths and vehicles should not be parked there. Moreover, garbage should not be thrown on the footpaths, roads or any other place. Ashwini Bhide also appealed for cooperation in the efforts being made by the administration.