GUWAHATI/MUMBAI: Eknath Shinde, the leader of rebellion in Maharashtra’s ruling Shiv Sena, on Wednesday made a big claim saying that he has the support of 40 MLAs. Shinde, who arrived at the Guwahati airport, spoke to reporters for the first time since his decision to revolt against his own party. Late on Monday, Shinde had left Mumbai with several Shiv Sena MLAs and stayed at a hotel in Gujarat’s Surat city. However, after talking to BJP leaders, he decided to shift to Guwahati.
Talking to reporters outside Guwahati airport, Shinde said, “There are 40 MLAs with me here. Additional 10 MLAs will join me soon. I don’t want to criticize anyone. We are keen to continue the Shiv Sena founded by late Balasaheb Thackeray.
His remarks came after speculations were rife that Shinde along with other MLAs may join the BJP to topple the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government. On reaching Guwahati, BJP MLA Sushant Borgohain and BJP MP Pallab Lochan Das welcomed the Shiv Sena MLAs at the Guwahati airport.
Borgohain said, “I had come to pick him up (Shiv Sena MLA from Surat in Gujarat). I did not count how many MLAs have come. I have come here for personal relations. He has not disclosed any schedule.”
Talking to media persons at Surat airport here before leaving for Guwahati, Shinde said he has not abandoned Balasaheb Thackeray’s Shiv Sena. “We have not abandoned Balasaheb Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and will not leave it. We have been following Balasaheb’s Hindutva and will take it further.”
The rapid development came after suspicious cross-voting in the Maharashtra Legislative Council (MLC) elections, in which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dealt a major blow to the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition government.
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Shiv Sena won two seats each, while the Congress managed to capture one seat out of the total 10 seats in the Legislative Council where voting was held on Monday.
After the MLC elections, Shinde was staying at Le Meridien Hotel in Surat along with some other Shiv Sena MLAs. A Shiv Sena delegation comprising Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s close aide Milind Narvekar and Ravindra Phatak also met Shinde and other party MLAs in Surat.
Alleging that attempts were being made to topple the MVA government, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday confirmed that some Shiv Sena MLAs and Eknath Shinde were “out of reach” at present.
He said that Shiv Sena MLAs are in Surat and they are not being allowed to go. Amidst the drama, Shinde took a veiled dig at Shiv Sena for joining hands with Congress and NCP to form government in the state and tweeted, “We are Balasaheb’s staunch Shiv Sainiks… Balasaheb taught us Hindutva. We have. Never and will never cheat for power regarding Balasaheb’s ideas and Dharamveer Anand Dighe Saheb’s teachings.”
Shinde has also removed ‘Shiv Sena’ from his Twitter bio. He has been instrumental in strengthening the organization in the Thane region and was made the Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly after the Shiv Sena split from the BJP in 2014.
Shinde was appointed as a cabinet minister in the MVA government. However, sources said Shinde has been feeling isolated since the formation of the MVA government. His son Shrikant Shinde represents the Kalyan Lok Sabha seat.
Amidst these developments, Shiv Sena leaders met Deputy Speaker of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Narhari Jirwal and handed over a letter requesting him to remove Eknath Shinde from the post of Legislature Party leader and replace Ajay Choudhary as the leader of Shiv Sena Legislature Party. it was done.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil claimed that “technically” the state government is in “minority” as Eknath Shinde and other Shiv Sena MLAs have left. He said the BJP was currently in “wait and see” mode and added that neither the BJP nor Shinde has received any proposal regarding government formation.
“BJP got the support of independents and small political parties for the Rajya Sabha and MLC elections. As per our information, Eknath Shinde and 35 MLAs are gone. This means that technically the state government is in a minority but practically the government is formed. It will take some time. In the minority,” he said.
The BJP and Shiv Sena used to be allies until 2019, when the two parted ways over the chief minister’s post after contesting the Maharashtra assembly elections together.
After days of political impasse and high-voltage drama, the Shiv Sena finally formed a government with the Congress and the NCP, with Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray leading the Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition government.
The Shiv Sena currently has 56 MLAs in the Maharashtra Assembly, having joined hands with the NCP and Congress after the 2019 assembly elections to form the government by breaking alliance with the BJP.
(with agency input)