Mumbai, Oct 12: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday launched a scathing attack on Lok Sabha Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi and the INDIA bloc, accusing them of executing a deliberate strategy to pressure and delegitimize India’s constitutional institutions, including the Supreme Court, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

The Chief Minister’s strong reaction came as INDIA bloc leaders, led by Rahul Gandhi, staged a high-voltage march in New Delhi towards the Supreme Court.

The opposition leaders are demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, accusing him, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Union Home Minister Amit Shah of subverting electoral integrity and “robbing the nation”.

CM Fadnavis criticised the opposition for brandishing copies of the Constitution while systematically undermining constitutional bodies. He alleged that the current protests are part of an extreme far-left plot designed to reject Dr B R Ambedkar’s Constitution and breed public distrust against democratic systems.

Questioning the rationale behind marching to the apex court to force a meeting with the Chief Justice of India (CJI), CM Fadnavis asked, “Which section of the Constitution empowers a political march to demand an audience with the Chief Justice of India? Attempting to exert pressure on the Supreme Court is a direct insult to Dr Ambedkar’s Constitution.”

Drawing a sharp contrast, he invoked the 1975 Emergency imposed by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. He highlighted how the Congress regime then suspended fundamental rights and restricted citizens from approaching High Courts and the Supreme Court.

“We fought against constitutional tampering in 1975, and we will fight again today. We will never allow anyone to alter or tamper with Dr B R Ambedkar’s Constitution,” he declared.

CM Fadnavis asserted that Congress’s repeated electoral failures have driven it to resort to anarchy. He also pointed to instances during past agitations at Jantar Mantar, where social media algorithms were manipulated to spread chaos, noting that platforms like Meta later issued apologies over ad-driven content and missteps involving Prime Minister Modi’s posts.

He stated that Congress needs to stop blaming Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) for its political setbacks and instead look inward at its failed leadership. “Congress needs to find the reasons for its failure not in EVMs, but in its own leadership. This is a rejected leadership that is repeatedly re-launched, only to fail every time,” he noted.

Emphasising Congress’s declining footprint, CM Fadnavis noted that key states across the nation have rejected the party for decades, including Tamil Nadu: 59 years, West Bengal: 50 years, Uttar Pradesh: 46 years, Sikkim: 42 years, Bihar: 36 years, Tripura: 33 years, Gujarat: 31 years and Madhya Pradesh & Odisha: 23+ years.

He added that across 18 states, voters have distanced themselves from Congress for decades, forcing the party to rely heavily on regional partners like the DMK, RJD, and BSP to survive.

He accused the opposition of systematically trying to instill distrust in the public mind regarding democratic institutions and the rule of law.

Mumbai, Oct 12: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday launched a scathing attack on the opposition and activist groups, defending Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant’s decision to decline a meeting with protesters.

Speaking during a media interaction, he accused opposition parties and outfits of running a systematic design to undermine India’s core constitutional institutions and usher in an “ultra-Leftist” brand of anarchy.

Defending the CJI’s refusal to meet demonstrators, CM Fadnavis asked, “Which Constitution states that the Chief Justice of India should meet protesters and marchers?” He emphasised that the CJI acted well within his constitutional rights and praised the judiciary’s stance that grievances must be legally addressed inside courtrooms rather than through street pressure.

CM Fadnavis alleged that a well-crafted conspiracy is underway to systematically devalue independent pillars of democracy, such as the Supreme Court, the Election Commission, and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He noted that the ultimate goal of these groups is to convince citizens that constitutional frameworks cannot deliver justice.

Commenting on recent demonstrations, including those by the Congress and civil groups, CM Fadnavis distinguished between lawful democratic protest and chaos. Pointing to instances where crowds allegedly crossed the line with provocative sloganeering, he asserted that when thousands with criminal records mobilise to disrupt public order, it amounts to outright anarchy rather than peaceful dissent.

Addressing reports that certain protesters praised his governance style as “soft-hearted” to allow demonstrations, he dismissed the remarks as a tactical ploy. He stated he is not easily swayed by opportunistic flattery, pointing out that the intent behind such praise was merely a convenient vehicle to target higher offices.

Contrasting the current protests with constructive democratic engagement, CM Fadnavis highlighted his administration’s willingness to engage in dialogue with anyone — reiterating that even violent insurgent elements like Naxalites have been approached with attempts at reform and persuasion through democratic channels, rather than enabling lawlessness under the guise of activism.

CM Fadnavis’ comment comes after BJP National President Nitin Nabin targeted Opposition parties and youth groups leading protests in the national capital over electoral roll revisions and the Chief Election Commissioner’s accountability.

Nabin accused the INDIA bloc and youth organisations (such as the Cockroach Janta Party) of attempting to “destabilise the nation” after being rejected by voters in democratic elections. He alleged that the ongoing protests were being driven at the behest of “foreign forces” seeking to undermine domestic peace and economic development.

Mumbai, Oct 12: The Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray on Monday accused the Central government of resorting to “cowardly” dictatorial tactics to crush “widespread” anti-government demonstrations across the country.

Its criticism comes in the wake of a security clampdown in the national capital and Mumbai on October 10, during which thousands of protesters, student activists, and key opposition figures were detained.

The Thackeray camp in the party’s mouthpiece, ‘Saamana’, said that the Central government deployed armed security personnel — recalled from anti-terror and anti-Naxalite operations in regions such as Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Jammu & Kashmir, and Manipur — to enforce an unprecedented blockade across Delhi.

Access routes and alleys across the national capital were sealed, while an estimated force of nearly 1,00,000 armed personnel surrounded the residence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Krishna Menon Road. The aggressive security grid disrupted public infrastructure, shutting down internet services, metro transit, local bus networks, incoming long-distance trains and commercial flights. Police reportedly boarded an aircraft to detain key political leaders, including Dipankar Bhattacharya and Manoj Jha, claimed the editorial.

Despite the widespread logistical shutdown, large crowds of students and civil society members reached protest venues in Delhi. During the crackdown, police arrested former Chief Ministers, including former West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal, the editorial stated.

In Mumbai, police detained Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, as he attempted to lead a peaceful satyagraha towards August Kranti Maidan. The action drew immediate resistance from opposition leaders, with Shiv Sena(UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray and party workers marching to the DN Nagar police station to demand his immediate release, the editorial said.

The editorial highlighted growing international scrutiny over India’s internal security operations. The United Nations Human Rights Office expressed deep concern over the arbitrary detentions, the heavy-handed police conduct, and reports of female demonstrators being dragged into prison vans and taken to undisclosed locations. The UN urged Indian authorities to uphold the fundamental right to peaceful assembly and release all arbitrarily detained citizens. In addition, global news outlets, including The New York Times and major London dailies, featured photos of the crackdown, observing that Indian democracy faces a severe crisis.

Rebutting statements from BJP leaders and state media portraying the demonstrations as a “flop show”, the Thackeray camp asserted that the government’s panicked reliance on iron-fisted policing demonstrated its underlying vulnerability.

The editorial alleged a decade-long pattern of public harassment, treasury exploitation, and electoral manipulation. “When a dictator is afraid, the demon within him builds armed steel walls for self-protection, but these walls are inevitably destroyed by the rebellion of the people,” the editorial declared, claiming that public outrage over governance issues has reached a tipping point.