Nashik Kumbh Mela: Raj Thackeray Warns Govt Over Sadhu Gram Tree Felling, Hints at MNS Protest in City

MNS chief Raj Thackeray has voiced his opposition to the cutting of trees for constructing a `Sadhu Gram’ ahead of the Kumbh Mela in Nashik, and said the BJP-led government should not allow the matter to escalate. In a statement, Raj Thackeray accused the government of indulging in “opportunism”. It plans to cut the trees under the pretext of Kumbh Mela, and then donate the land to their “favourite industrialists”, the MNS chief said. The Sadhu Gram is being planned over 1,200 acres of Tapovan area ahead of the Kumbh Mela, starting from October 31, 2026. As many as 1,670 trees, some of them said to be more than 100 years old, were marked for removal earlier this month.

A notice issued by the Nashik Municipal Corporation to cut down trees received hundreds of objections. A hearing on the objections held on Monday witnessed chaotic scenes as green activists and citizens strongly opposed the proposed tree-cutting drive. In his social media post, Raj Thackeray said this was not the first time the Kumbh Mela was going to be held in Nashik. “When the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) was in power in Nashik, many basic infrastructure works were carried out then. At that time, there were corporators who enabled a good dialogue between the administration that led to an excellent arrangement. When in power in Nashik, the MNS did not feel the need to cut trees,” he said.

The government should not give a hollow assurance that new trees will be planted at a different location, because that never happens. And if the government has space to plant five times as many trees elsewhere, then why not build Sadhu Gram there instead, the MNS chief asked. “The (state) government should not resort to opportunism by giving the pretext of sadhus to benefit industrialists. Today, using the pretext of the Kumbh Mela, the trees will be cut, the land be levelled in the name of Sadhus, and then it will be donated to their favourite industrialists! That is the only thought this government seems to have!” Thackeray said. “Swallowing up” land or working as brokers for industrialists is what the ministers, MLAs, their relatives and friends have been doing in Maharashtra, he alleged. “I urge the people of Nashik to stand firm. We will oppose the move even after the (local body) polls. I urge the government not to escalate the matter, and (instead) respect the views of people. If the government takes a confrontational stand, then the MNS will be with the people in this fight,” Thackeray said.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Friday hit out at the Maharashtra government over the "alarming rise" in Mumbai's air pollution, calling it an outcome of "explosion of corruption", and attributed it to development with zero planning aimed at benefiting the contractors. Addressing a press conference in Mumbai, Thackeray also questioned the state government for planning to cut trees in Tapovan area of Nashik to make way for the construction of 'sadhu gram', a temporary colony of seers and saints meant for their stay during the Kumbh Mela 2026-27. On the proposed plan to cut trees in Nashik, Thackeray said Tapovan, where the proposed sadhu gram is to come up, is the place where it is widely believed that Lord Ram, Sita and Lakshman resided during their exile. "This cutting of trees is corruption in the name of Hindutva. BJP's Hindutva is fake and the trees are being cut to benefit the contractors," Thackeray said. He further said his party was not opposed to Kumbh Mela but to cutting of trees.