‘Uddhav doesn’t deserve the people’s sympathy,’ Narayan Rane tells HT

MUMBAI: Nursing old wounds but ready to do fresh battle is Narayan Rane, who is camping in his Lok Sabha constituency of Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, from which both his sons are contesting the assembly elections. While Nilesh Rane (Shiv Sena), a former MP, will take on sitting MLA Vaibhav Naik (Shiv Sena-UBT) in Kudal, Nitesh Rane (BJP) is contesting against Sandesh Parkar (Sena-UBT) in Kankavali.
Rane, a BJP MP, is a former chief minister of Maharashtra and a political war horse. He has been accused of dynastic politics in the Konkan, especially in Malvan, and is known to boldly brandish his authority in the region. His pet peeve, though, is Sena-UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray, whom he claims deserves no sympathy despite the bitter split in the parent Shiv Sena in 2022. In an exclusive interview to Yogesh Naik, Rane also spoke about making Sindhudurg a model district. Excerpts:
In light of the Shiv Sena split, do you think Uddhav Thackeray will gain the sympathy of Sena voters?
Why should Uddhav get any sympathy? What did he do for two and a half years when he was CM? Not a single developmental project moved during his tenure. Narayan Rane, Ganesh Naik, Chhagan Bhujbal left the Sena. Did Uddhav Thackeray ever stop to wonder why? We all left because of him.
The Konkan is considered the backbone of the Shiv Sena (UBT). Many Sainiks with Bal Thackeray hailed from this region. How will the Konkan vote this time?
Not many are with the Sena (UBT) now. I left them way back and so did my supporters. There are many others like me. Ganesh Naik has left them. Hence, the Konkan, including Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri and Raigad are no longer loyal to Uddhav’s party. He does not have any heft left to rebuild the party.
The collapse of the Shivaji statue in Malvan in August drew flak for the BJP and Sena. There was a huge protest by the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) at Rajkot fort.
The MVA had brought just 25 persons for the protest. I was present at Rajkot fort and did not allow MVA leaders, including Aaditya Thackeray, to emerge for two hours. NCP (SP) state president Jayant Patil and the district superintendent of police asked me to relent. I did, on condition that they leave with no fuss, and they did. They should be ashamed to call themselves Sainiks.
What impact will the Maratha agitation have on the Mahayuti’s election outcome?
It won’t impact the Konkan.
What about its impact in Marathwada, where the agitation started?
It might impact Marathwada but not the Konkan.
Who will become chief minister if Mahayuti returns to power?
Why is the media trying to drive a wedge between us? We are fighting the elections together and doing well. Our leaders in Delhi will take a decision on this.
Sena (UBT) leaders are accusing you of dynastic politics. You are the MP here and both your sons have been fielded for the assembly elections, one from the Sena and the other the BJP.
What about Uddhav Thackeray? He has succeeded Balasaheb, and now there is Aaditya. They are also bringing in Tejas (Uddhav’s younger son). Their only claim to fame is being sons of Uddhav Thackeray. What about Sharad Pawar? Isn’t that dynastic politics too? He has a dozen relatives in politics. In the Congress, right from Nehru’s time, there have been at least 11 leaders from the family in politics.
How many women in Sindhudurg have been covered under the Ladki Bahin scheme?
The coverage has been 100 per cent. We have a good track record of giving back to the people.
Tourism in Sindhudurg district is doing very well but a lot more needs to be done to develop infrastructure and industry there. As a result, people from Sindhudurg still migrate to Goa for jobs.
The per capita income in Sindhudurg is ₹2.5 lakh, well above Vidarbha and Marathwada, where it is ₹1 lakh to ₹1.25 lakh. I plan to raise it to ₹3.5 lakh in the next two years. To generate employment, I will have to get 500 to 1,000 big factories to the region. We have the land, water supply and power for this. Our district is also connected by an airport, and we have a port in the vicinity. Another plus is the literacy rate, which is 98%. Sindhudurg district can become a model district in terms of development.