Uddhav Thackeray says dragging his name into Disha Salian case politically motivated

Uddhav Thackeray said dragging his name into the Disha Salian case was “politically motivated.” (File Photo)

Sena UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday alleged that dragging his name into the Disha Salian case was “politically motivated” and warned of taking legal action if the “character assassination” did not stop.

Uddhav’s remark came a day after Sena UBT MLA Aaditya Thackeray denied ever knowing or meeting Disha Salian.

“My name is mentioned (in the FIR). Tomorrow yours will be too. There is no connection whatsoever, direct or indirect. How long are we supposed to endure this? Tomorrow Narendra Modi and Donald Trump’s names might be added too. Why is my name being dragged into this? It is politically motivated. We remained silent, but enough with this cheap character assassination. Otherwise, we will take legal recourse as well. We have no connection to this matter,” the Sena (UBT chief said in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, where he addressed a rally on the occasion of Marathwada Liberation Day.

Following the directives from the Bombay High Court, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered an FIR in the Disha Salian case based on the statement given by her father, Satish Salian. The FIR mentions the names of several individuals, including Uddhav Thackeray, Aaditya Thackeray, former Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh, Sachin Waze, actor Sooraj Pancholi, Dino Morea, and Rhea Chakraborty, among others.

A former celebrity manager, Disha Salian had worked with actor Sushant Singh Rajput. She died in June 2020, after falling from a high-rise residential building in Mumbai, days before the actor’s death.

On Wednesday, Aaditya Thackeray had denied even knowing Disha Salian. “To clear the air and put an end to rumors, I am stating the pure facts once again. I have never met Disha Salian, nor did I know her. For the past six years, certain individuals have been deliberately attempting to link my name to this tragic incident due to political motives, personal enmity, and an intent to malign my character, despite there being zero evidence or connection. This continuous false campaign, lacking any facts or truth, is unfortunate.”

Meanwhile, Uddhav Thackeray alleged that the ”mystery” surrounding Gopinath Munde’s death needs to be unraveled.

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Raising doubts over the former Union Minister’s death, Thackeray said, “Munde’s death remains a mystery. He could not sit in the Lok Sabha even for a single day as a Union Minister.”

The Sena (UBT) chief said leaders like Pramod Mahajan and Gopinath Munde built the BJP’s roots in Maharashtra but could not enjoy power.

Supporting Thackeray’s views, Congress leader Nana Patole said,”We continuously raised our stance regarding Ajit Pawar in the Assembly, but even a simple FIR could not be registered. What is being hidden? Uddhav Thackeray mentioned Gopinath Munde. Munde Saheb was a great leader. He raised the question of whether his death was due to an accident or foul play. The government should investigate this so that everything becomes crystal clear,” Patole said.

Munde at died in a car accident when he was heading to Delhi airport to catch a flight to Beed in June 2014.