Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Sunday accused the Maharashtra government of favouring the Adani Group in projects like redevelopment of Dharavi in Mumbai and systematically undermining the city's economic prominence.
Speaking at a party event, Thackeray also demanded facilities and incentives like Gujarat's GIFT City (Gujarat International Finance Tec-City) for Mumbai, while alleging a deliberate erosion of the metropolis' financial importance.
Further targeting the ruling BJP, he claimed major projects and headquarters of some companies have been shifted from Mumbai to Gujarat and Delhi.
Thackeray questioned its detrimental impact on Maharashtra's economy.
"How will Mumbai benefit when its economic backbone is being deliberately weakened? Even in Jharkhand and Varanasi (in Uttar Pradesh), people ask why new projects are going to Gujarat instead of other states," he said.
The former state minister also alleged that there was a deliberate attempt to put financial strain on the Brihamumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking's bus services here, reducing its fleet from 4,000 buses to 1,500-2,000.
"By 2027, we had planned to introduce 10,000 electric buses, including 900 double-decker buses. Now, even the iconic red buses are disappearing. The red bus was a symbol of Mumbai, but today you cannot distinguish it from an advertisement hoarding," he said.
The MLA from Worli in Mumbai claimed the poor state of the public transport service was part of a larger strategy to keep people distracted from critical issues such as land grabs by corporate entities.
He also accused the government of transferring vast tracts of land in Mumbai to the Adani Group under the "guise" of redevelopment.
The Sena (UBT) claimed the Dharavi redevelopment project would lead to the displacement of 1.5 lakh families who would be forced to leave Mumbai.
"Residents will receive only 305 square feet homes that will be placed in ways which will destroy their livelihood," Thackeray claimed.
"This is not redevelopment; it's exploitation," he charged.
Dharavi, one of the world's densest urban sprawls, is a slum colony having a mix of residential and small industrial units.
Notably, the Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay Mumbai's Dharavi redevelopment project.
The apex court sought responses from the Maharashtra government and Adani Properties Pvt Ltd, which was awarded the tender for the project, on a petition challenging a December 20, 2024 verdict of the Bombay High Court.
The high court had cleared the decks for redevelopment of the slums in Dharavi and upheld the tender awarded to the Adani Group for the project, ruling there was no "arbitrariness, unreasonableness or perversity" in the decision.
The high court in the process dismissed the plea of UAE-based Seclink Technologies Corporation challenging the state government's decision to award the mega redevelopment project to Adani Properties Pvt Ltd, which had made a Rs 5,069-crore offer.
Calling for parity in treatment between Mumbai and Gujarat's GIFT City, Thackeray demanded subsidies and incentives for Maharashtra's state capital to preserve its status as India's economic powerhouse.
"Mumbai has been India's economic backbone for decades. We will not let it lose its importance," he asserted.
Thackeray also accused the government of prioritising corporate interests over public welfare.
"There is nothing wrong with earning wealth in Mumbai, but looting Mumbaikars for it is unacceptable," he said.
Disclaimer: This is a syndicated feed. The article is not edited by the FPJ editorial team.
