Wadettiwar calls Maharashtra polls a battle of Savidhan Parivar vs Sangh Parivar

Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar criticizes BJP's divisive slogans, predicts MVA alliance victory in Maharashtra Assembly elections.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is increasingly relying on “polarising” and “provocative” slogans like “batenge toh katenge” (divided we perish) and “ek hai toh safe hai” (we are safe if we are united) during its campaign for the Maharashtra Assembly elections, slated for November 20, according to Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar.

Speaking to The Hindu while campaigning in Brahmapuri, his home constituency in Chandrapur district, Mr. Wadettiwar, the Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing Assembly, said the BJP’s tactics reflect its vulnerability. “This election is a battle between the Savidhan Parivar and the Sangh Parivar,” he said.

He dismissed the BJP’s claims of threats to Hindu unity, asserting, “The Hindus are not in danger—the BJP is. That’s why they are resorting to such divisive slogans. But in Maharashtra, these attempts will fail, as the society here is rooted in the egalitarian ideals of Shahu Maharaj, Jyotiba Phule, and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.”

“Clearly, it is Savidhan Parivar vs Sangh Parivar. Those who believe in the Constitution and those of the ideology of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)— the ideological backbone of the BJP,” he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi first used the slogan “ek hai toh safe hai”during a rally in Dhule, accusing the Congress of attempting to divide Dalits, scheduled tribes, and other backward castes. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had earlier popularised “batenge toh katenge” while referring to violence against Hindu minorities in Bangladesh. Both leaders have repeated these slogans in their campaign speeches in Maharashtra.

Optimistic about the Congress’s prospects, Mr. Wadettiwar predicted that the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance—comprising the Congress, Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP), and Shiv Sena (UBT)—would secure 170 seats, with Congress alone winning over 75 seats. He pointed to the 2019 elections when Congress and the erstwhile NCP won 98 seats despite a strong BJP wave. “This time, there is no such ‘negative wave’. We are confident of winning at least 125 to 130 together in addition to the seats won by our ally Shiv Sena (UBT),” he said, adding that MVA is poised to oust the Eknath Shinde-led MahaYuti government,

Mr. Wadettiwar also dismissed speculation of discord within the MVA, accusing the BJP of spreading such rumours to confuse voters. “Not just this, they’re also doing a whisper campaign that it is going to be a tough election. Let me clarify, this election is not tough to predict—it’s one of the easiest. All surveys by the MahaYuti show the MVA leading comfortably as a result the BJP got into panic mode and is running a whisper campaign to spread doubt among voters, but it won’t work,” he said.