"If things continue like this, what is the future of the country?" said Uddhav Thackeray.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray assured support to his Telangana counterpart K Chandrashekar Rao's efforts to form an anti-BJP front, alleging damage to the country's federalism, and "low-grade politics that is not Hindutva". Mr Rao declared they were practically brothers, since their states shared a 1000-km border. The Telangana Chief Minister -- who came to Mumbai to get Mr Thackeray and his alliance partner Sharad Pawar on board -- assured that the talks will continue. "We will sit in Hyderabad or somewhere else in a few days and discuss more," he said.
It was the remarks of Mr Thackeray -- a longtime BJP ally who turned against it after the 2019 elections -- that carried the sting.
"The situation prevailing in the country and the way low-grade politics is happening is not Hindutva," declared Mr Thackeray, whose party had found common ground with the BJP in right wing politics for decades.
"Hindutva is not about violence or revenge. If things continue like this, what is the future of the country?" added the Shiv Sena leader, whom the BJP accused of diluting his ideological commitment to share power with secular parties like the Congress and Sharad Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party.
Mr Thackeray -- whose repeated attacks against the BJP in the last years of their alliance made headlines -- did not name the former ally, but heaped criticism on it on multiple fronts.
Echoing the opposition concern about federalism, he said, "The atmosphere that should be there between states and the Centre is not seen. This politics will not work, so we have made a fresh start."
Mr Rao and the leaders he got on board -- Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Tamil Nadu's MK Stalin and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda -- have repeatedly accused the Centre of violating cooperative federalism.
The Telangana Chief Minister has also said there is a need for a debate on a new Constitution to safeguard the jurisdiction and powers of the states.
Mr Thackeray also spoke about how the Central government uses different ways to spread false rumours about some states and some people – "defaming someone by falsely promoting what has not happened".
"The front that emerged from Maharashtra is successful… We want to fight with the inspiration that the country has got from people like Shivaji Maharaj and Balasaheb," asserted, adding that "what happened today will have good results".