Rane, 63, lost to ruling Shiv Sena's Trupti Sawant in Bandra (East) on Wednesday, home turf of party founder Bal Thackeray, his second consecutive defeat in six months. The Sena said Rane will lose by even greater margin if he contests the elections for the third time.
"This election teaches that those who try and come into Matoshree's (Thackeray family residence) backyard will get buried and won't be forgiven. Let us see who can beat us," an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana' said.
"This seat had fallen vacant following the demise of (Sena leader) Bala Sawant. The by-poll should have been held uncontested. But, by fielding an egoistic man against us, the Congress has bared itself in front of the people," it said.
In the by-election, Trupti Sawant secured 52,711 votes while Rane garnered only 33,703 votes, losing by a margin of 19,008 votes. All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen candidate Rehbar Khan was a distant third with 15,050 votes.
"In the 2014 state assembly election, Narayan Rane had lost to us by 10,000 votes. This time his defeat margin got doubled. We do not have any doubt in our mind that he will lose by thrice the margin the next time he chooses to contest polls," it further said.
Taking a dig at Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, who had actively
campaigned for Rane, the editorial said there was no need for him to come out and campaign against the Sena in the latter's backyard. The echo of Rane's defeat must have reached the veteran politician's ears by now, it said.
The ruling alliance partner in the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Maharashtra government also hit out at Asaduddin Owaisi, saying that the Muslims in the constituency have buried the AIMIM and ensured that its candidate's deposit got forfeited.
"Muslims did not back Owaisi's poisonous politics. Both the brothers (Asaduddin and Akbaruddin) tried hard to spew venom and poison people's minds. But, it ended up in their candidate's deposit getting forfeited," it said.
Meanwhile, Marathi newspaper 'Prahar', of which Rane is the editorial consultant, sought to put the onus of the Congress leader's defeat in Bandra by-poll on senior party leaders.
"The question to be discussed now is whether those who accepted Rane's candidature in public, really agreed to his being fielded," an editorial in the daily said.
Last month, Rane had made remarks over the AICC's decision to appoint former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan as the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president.
On the former Member of Parliament appointed as Mumbai Regional Congress Committee chief, Rane had said he was not a suitable candidate for the post and had even raked the Congress leader's 'non-Maharashtrian' (north Indian) origin.
Titled 'Rane fought (but) Congress lost', the editorial said, "Rane may have suffered a technical defeat but the real defeat is that of the Congress party."
On speculation in media that Rane's political career is over after the second consecutive Assembly election defeat in six months, the newspaper said, "The politics of a political leader does not end with electoral defeat."