Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut on Saturday, 19 September 2026, launched a strong defence of the Thackeray family, alleging that renewed attempts to link them to the Disha Salian case were politically motivated and deliberately timed to undercut the party's resurgence in Maharashtra politics. Raut's remarks came in response to a ₹500-crore defamation lawsuit filed by Disha Salian's father, Satish Salian, against former ministers Aaditya Thackeray and Anil Deshmukh.

The Defamation Notice and Raut's Rebuttal

Addressing the media in Mumbai, Raut strongly rejected the fresh allegations surrounding Disha Salian's death. According to reports, Satish Salian is expected to personally deliver the defamation notice at Matoshree, the Thackeray family's official residence in Bandra. Raut questioned what he described as the selective assertion of self-respect by the complainants, labelling the legal action a politically driven smear campaign orchestrated by 'outside forces.' He argued that Disha Salian's 2020 death had already been acknowledged as an accident — including, he claimed, by her father in earlier statements — and accused political opponents of reviving resolved matters whenever the Thackeray family gains momentum.

Allegations Against the Centre and Federal Institutions

Moving beyond state politics, Raut levelled sweeping allegations targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and federal institutions. He claimed, without providing documentary evidence, that taxpayer funds collected via UPI are being routed to the United States as 'extortion money' to delay the public release of the international Epstein files, warning that any such disclosure would, in his words, trigger an 'earthquake' in Indian politics. These are Raut's allegations; they have not been independently verified.

RSS Chief's Remarks and Modi's Political Future

Raut also drew on a recent statement by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat about the inevitable setting of the sun, interpreting it as a signal of Prime Minister Modi's political decline ahead of the 2029 general elections. He dismissed comparisons of Modi to divine figures by supporters, emphasising that the Prime Minister is, in his characterisation, a human being prone to errors, fatigue, and false statements.

ECI Accused of Bias, Democracy Under Threat

Raut also trained his fire on the Election Commission of India (ECI), accusing it of functioning as a partisan instrument under Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He cited the recent arrest of a Congress candidate in West Bengal over an old protest case, as well as decisions relating to party symbols, as evidence of what he characterised as direct blows to Indian democracy. The ECI and the Union government have not formally responded to these specific allegations.

This is the latest in a series of confrontations between Shiv Sena (UBT) and its political rivals in Maharashtra, as the state's fractured political landscape continues to generate legal and rhetorical battles ahead of future electoral contests.