Eknath Shinde Hits Back at Uddhav Thackeray, Calls Him “Anaconda” Around Mumbai’s Treasury

Eknath Shinde lashes out at Uddhav Thackeray, accusing him of controlling Mumbai’s civic funds like an “anaconda” wrapped around the city’s treasury.

Mumbai, October 28, 2025 – Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has taken a strong swipe at former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, calling him an “anaconda” coiled around the treasury of Mumbai’s civic body. Speaking at a public rally, Shinde said Thackeray and his party had controlled Mumbai’s finances for decades, leaving little for the city’s people.

“For 25 years, you’ve been wrapped around Mumbai’s municipal treasury like an anaconda. You swallowed roads, land, and public funds — but your hunger never ended,” Shinde said, in one of his sharpest remarks yet.

The attack came soon after Uddhav Thackeray had used the same “anaconda” metaphor to criticize the current state government and Union Minister Amit Shah. Shinde turned the comparison around, saying the real anaconda was the group that ruled the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for over two decades.

The political exchange has added fuel to the already heated battle over control of the BMC, India’s richest civic body, where elections are expected soon. Both factions of the Shiv Sena — Shinde’s and Thackeray’s — are competing to claim ownership of the Sena’s traditional base in Mumbai.

Shinde accused the Thackeray-led faction of misusing public money during its long tenure in the civic body. “The city’s funds were treated like personal property,” he said, promising transparency and accountability if his alliance retains power.

Political observers say Shinde’s remarks reflect a larger strategy to project his camp as the true custodian of Mumbai’s development while portraying Thackeray’s leadership as exploitative. The “anaconda” metaphor has now become a flashpoint in the ongoing war of words between the two camps.

While Thackeray has not yet responded to Shinde’s latest jibe, his party members have dismissed the remarks as an attempt to distract voters from the state government’s own failures.

The exchange underscores how personal the political rivalry between the two leaders has become one that continues to define Maharashtra’s political scene ahead of crucial civic elections.

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