As first showers batter Mumbai, Aaditya Thackeray takes on Chief Minister Eknath Shinde over civic failures

As the city was bedevilled by water-logging at several points, Mr. Aaditya Thackeray attacked Mr. Shinde over the latter’s claims of civic preparedness.

As the first heavy showers rains battered Mumbai and suburbs on Sunday, triggering water-logging and building collapses, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray criticised Chief Minister and rival Shiv Sena faction leader Eknath Shinde over civic failures even as two persons died in an incident of building collapse in the city.

According to authorities in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the balcony of a ground floor and the first floor of a ground-plus-two floored building caved in the city’s Vile Parle area, killing two senior citizens.

In a separate incident, a portion of a ground-plus-three floor residential building collapsed in Mumbai’s Ghatkopar area. Four people have been rescued while two were still trapped inside the debris, BMC authorities said, adding that the situation was under control.

As the city was bedevilled by water-logging at several points, Mr. Aaditya Thackeray attacked Mr. Shinde over the latter’s claims of civic preparedness.

Mr. Aaditya Thackeray called Mr. Shinde’s response to citizens’ complaints about waterlogging and civic failures in Mumbai “disgraceful”, stating in a tweet that Mr. Shinde’s rebuke to Mumbai’s citizens was an embodiment of “shamelessness, incompetence, and corruption”.

“If shamelessness, incompetence and corruption had a face… It’s disgraceful for him [Mr. Shinde] to rebuke Mumbaikars for complaining about water logging and collapse of civic machinery yesterday. All his false promises, photo ops in Mumbai hold zero value,” he tweeted.

“The CM had said in May that his administration would complete 50 roads before the start of the monsoon. This is the smallest target in BMC’s history and yet not one of the 50 roads has been completed,” Mr. Aaditya Thackeray, son of former Chief Minister and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, later said, speaking to reporters.