What The FAQ: What is the Narayan Rane-Uddhav Thackeray slapgate all about? History of a decade-long feud

Union Minister Narayan Rane has been making headlines for his remark that he would have slapped Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray for not knowing the year of Independence. While he has been granted bail late last night a few hours after being arrested, the minister will have to be present at Ratnagiri and Nashik police stations over the next few days.

But the tiff between these two political leaders is not new. We take a look at who Rane is and why he has always locked horns with Uddhav.

Who is Narayan Rane?

Narayan Tatu Rane is currently the Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the Modi cabinet. He had also held office as the CM of Maharashtra for eight months in 1999. He is a former member of the Shiv Sena. He was expelled from the party by Bal Thackeray in 2005 after he alleged that the party was selling poll seats.

Why does he have a tiff with Uddhav?

The problems started when in 2003, Uddhav was named the executive president. Rane challenged the decision. He was expelled from the party two years later. Since then, Rane has left no opportunity to criticise the Sena or Uddhav. Before the slap remark, he had said that the Konkan region was flooded because of the CM's "bad luck".

What was his exact remark?

“It is shameful that the chief minister does not know the year of independence. He leaned back to enquire about the count of years of independence during his speech. Had I been there, I would have given (him) a tight slap,” Rane said during his Jan Ashirwad Yatra in adjoining Raigad district on Monday.

The BJP leader and former Shiv Sena chief minister claimed Thackeray forgot the year of independence during his August 15 address to the people of the state. Thackeray had to check the year of independence with his aides midway during the speech that day, Rane said.

How did the Shiv Sena react?

Rane's remarks drew sharp reactions from Shiv Sena, whose workers put several posters in Mumbai and other places, calling him a ‘kombdi chor' (chicken stealer), a reference to the poultry shop he ran in Chembur five decades ago, during his initial stint with the Bal Thackeray-led party.

Shiv Sena's Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg MP Vinayak Raut said Rane has lost his mental balance. “To impress BJP leadership, Rane has been attacking Shiv Sena and its leaders. He lost his mental balance after his induction into the Modi-led ministry. Modi should show him the door,” Raut said.