‘Can strive for it in elections’: Athawale hits out at Uddhav Thackeray’s ‘regime change’ remarks

New Delhi, Oct 18 (IANS) Union Minister Ramdas Athawale on Sunday launched a scathing attack on Shiv Sena-UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray over his ‘regime change’ remarks and said that in a democracy, the decision to change the government rests with the public, not an individual, and the only correct way to do this is by conducting elections.

Speaking to IANS, Athawale said, “If Uddhav Thackeray wants a change, he can strive for it in the upcoming 2029 elections. It is not in his hands alone; it lies with the public. Millions of people cast their votes and exercise their franchise to elect a government. This is not Bangladesh, Nepal, or Sri Lanka. Our country is governed according to the Constitution drafted by Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar.”

“(Chief Election Commissioner) Gyanesh Kumar is also elected through Constitutional power. If there is an allegation of ‘vote chori’, then the Election Commission will investigate it. However, SIR is also an important process to eliminate the names of fake voters, people who have passed away and avoid any duplications,” he added.

“If any genuine voter has been removed, the issue will surely be looked into… However, if Uddhav Thackeray wants the government to be changed, he should fight the elections,” Athawale said.

This came as Thackeray on Saturday strongly criticised the Centre over allegations of attempting a “regime change”. He delivered a fierce rebuttal, stating that if opposing the government democratically is branded as a regime change, then “Yes, we are trying to bring about a regime change, and we stand here precisely to overthrow this power.”

Addressing an awards presentation ceremony organised by the All India Journalists’ Conference here, Thackeray questioned how the Opposition could remain silent when the ruling establishment deprives citizens of their fundamental rights to express opinions through elections and stage peaceful protests.

Responding to the controversy surrounding the phrase “regime change”, Thackeray referred to advocate Prashant Bhushan’s recent remarks in Delhi. “If the ruling party claims that we are attempting to change this system, what is wrong with that?” he asked.

The controversy erupted after the use of the phrase ‘regime change’ by the Opposition leaders and student activists amid the ongoing protests in the national Capital against the Election Commission of India (ECI) and CEC Gyanesh Kumar over the alleged ‘vote theft’.

–IANS

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