Pune: NCP, BJP Leaders Clash Over Viral Namaz Video from Shaniwarwada
Shaniwar Peth, 20th October 2025: A video showing a few Muslim women offering namaz inside the Shaniwarwada premises has gone viral on social media, triggering a controversy and sparking political tensions between the BJP and NCP, both part of the ruling grand alliance in Maharashtra.
After the video surfaced, BJP MP Medha Kulkarni, along with members of the Patit Pawan Sanghatana, staged a protest at Shaniwarwada on Sunday. The group demanded the removal of a dargah located on the premises and sought police action against the women seen offering namaz.
However, on Monday, the NCP held a counter-protest at the same site, condemning Kulkarni’s remarks and actions. NCP spokesperson Rupali Thombre Patil strongly criticised Kulkarni, alleging that she was attempting to create communal tension during the Diwali festival.
“On the auspicious occasion of Diwali, Medha Kulkarni tried to provoke a Hindu-Muslim divide for political gain. She has been involved in illegal acts even during her tenure as MP. We demand that a case be registered against her,” Thombre said while addressing reporters during the protest.
She further stated that Shaniwarwada, once the seat of the Maratha Peshwas, has historical significance and that the dargah on the premises was registered by the Archaeological Department in 1936. “Pune has always been home to people of all religions — Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and others. Some are now trying to disturb the city’s peace. Shaniwarwada does not belong to anyone’s father but to our father, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj,” Thombre said, warning that if any action is taken against the women or NCP members, legal steps would follow.
The incident has fueled discussions in political circles about growing friction within the grand alliance, especially between BJP and NCP leaders, as both parties traded accusations in public over the matter.
