Surat (Gujarat): Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had a telephonic conversation with dissident party MLA Eknath Shinde on Tuesday. It has been learnt that Thackeray has appealed Shinde to come back to Mumbai and discuss the matter. According to sources, during the call, Shinde urged the Chief Minister that it was time to ally with the BJP.
He also expressed displeasure within the MVA government, noting that "MLAs and ministers have the same role". Shinde is also said to have noted that an atmosphere was being created against him, referring to his removal from the post of legislative party leader. Earlier in the day, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday addressed Shinde as an 'old friend', noting that the latter was aware of why exactly the Sena had left the BJP-fold.
"...Talks happened with Eknath Shinde. He is our old friend. Everyone knows why we left BJP and Eknath Shinde is also a witness to that," Raut said. He further noted that Sena leaders Milind Narvekar and Ravi Pathak, who had gone to Surat as mediators, will convey their interaction with Shinde to the Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
Narvekar and Pathak on Tuesday met Shinde at the hotel in Surat where he, as well as 34 other MLAs, are camping at the moment. Both were stopped for a duration of about 30 minutes before entering the hotel. A group of Maharashtra Policemen accompanying the two were also stopped at the gates. The development followed after Shiv Sena removed Shinde from the position of Legislative party leader after the latter alongside 11 other MLAs travelled to Gujarat and put up at the hotel earlier in the day.
The party said that Sewri MLA Ajay Chaudhary was going to be the new legislative party leader. Shinde's desertion came as a major jolt to the Sena, one of three member parties of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance ruling Maharashtra at the moment. At a press conference in Delhi, NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar said that Shinde had not 'conveyed anything' to state leaders regarding his ambitions to become Chief Minister.
"Eknath Shinde has never conveyed to us that he wants to be Chief Minister. The Chief Minister's post belongs to the Shiv Sena. The Deputy Chief Minister's post is that of NCP. This is an internal issue of Shiv Sena, Whatever they decide we are with them". Pawar further noted that situations like the one at hand keep arising, and was nothing out of ordinary.
"This is the third such incident that has happened in the last two and a half years, all MLAs of NCP voted for us in the MLC polls. Cross voting happens in such polls, nothing new in that. Govt will continue to run" the NCP chief and Rajya Sabha MP said, according to ANI. Shinde, meanwhile, tweeted out, saying he would never cheat "Balasaheb's thoughts" for power.
Read: BJP outwits MVA in Maha Council polls, wins all five seats
"We are Balasaheb's staunch Shiv Sainiks. Balasaheb has taught us Hindutva. We have never and will never cheat for power on Balasaheb's thoughts and Anand Dighe Saheb's teachings," he wrote in Marathi. According to sources, the MLAs are in touch with BJP Gujarat president CR Patil. Meanwhile, Nitin Deshmukh, one of the MLAs accompanying Shinde in Surat, was on Tuesday admitted to a hospital in the city after he complained of uneasiness. Deshmukh was also learned to have caused a ruckus inside the hotel on Monday night, expressing unhappiness about the way he was brought to Gujarat.
Speaking on the sudden political crisis in Maharashtra, state BJP chief Chandrakant Patil on Tuesday said that the party received support from 'small and independent parties' for both MLC and Rajya Sabha elections. Addressing the MLA numbers on each side, Patil noted that the state government was already 'in minority', but added that BJP was not looking for a special session to call for a no-confidence motion. He, however, said that the party would explore opportunities for the same once the Assembly session starts on July 18.
"BJP got support from independents and small political parties for Rajya Sabha and MLC elections. As per our info, Eknath Shinde and 35 MLAs have gone. This means technically state govt is in minority but practically it will take some time for the govt to be in minority. As of now, there's no situation that demands a special session to be called for a no-confidence motion. From July 18, the Assembly session will begin, and then we will look into it" he said.
The ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance in Maharashtra suffered a major setback on Monday as the opposition BJP won all the five seats it contested in the state Legislative Council elections. Eknath Shinde, along with his supporters, was not seen in Maharashtra since Monday evening. Earlier on the 56th anniversary of Shiv Sena, a tussle reportedly broke out between party chief Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde. There are speculations within political circles that there might be a split within the Shiv Sena.
