"He might have forgotten that he lives in Hindu nation ": Nitesh Rane on Waris Pathan's statement
Dec 28, 2025
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], December 29 : BJP leader Nitesh Rane on Sunday reacted sharply to remarks made by AIMIM national spokesperson Waris Pathan on the upcoming mayoral and Municipal Corporation elections in Mumbai, saying that he might have forgotten that "he lives in a Hindu nation."
"He might have forgotten that he lives in a Hindu nation and Shariya law does not apply here. The mayor here will only be the one with Hidutva ideology, because Hidutva is in the DNA of Mumbai... There have been conspiracies of spreading Jihadi mindset in the country, so be it Waris Pathan or their leaders sitting in Pakistan, we will not let them succeed...," Rane told ANI.
This comes after Pathan questioned, saying, "Why can't a Khan, Pathan, Sheikh, Qureshi, Syed become the mayor?"
"Why can't a Khan, Pathan, Sheikh, Qureshi, Syed become the mayor? We believe that one day a Hijab-wearing woman will also become a mayor one day... Muslims have been leaders in the nation already... They (Maharashtra government) have no response to the lack of development and farmers suicide... They simply want to spread polarization...," Pathan said while speaking on the upcoming Municipal Corporation elections.
As the BMC elections draw near, Mumbai BJP president Ameet Satam on Saturday said that the Mahayuti has reached a seat-sharing agreement on 207 seats. "The BJP will contest 128 seats, and the Shiv Sena will contest 79 seats. Seat-sharing talks have concluded for 207 seats. For the remaining 20 seats, we will decide based on the candidate and the party after a decision is made at the higher level," Satam told reporters after a meeting between the BJP and Shiv Sena concluded.
Earlier, the Maharashtra State Election Commission announced elections to 29 Municipal Corporations across the state, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC).
Elections to major civic bodies, including the BMC and PMC, will be held on 15 January and counting on Jan 16.
