New Delhi: After Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) was trounced in the Maharashtra Assembly election, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray was questioned whether the result had resolved the debate over who portrays the ‘real’ Shiv Sena — he himself or his former ally and current Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
Replying to this question, the former Chief Minister, whose government was unseated in 2022 when Shinde rebelled with his MLAs and created a split in the Sena, took a swipe at the CM. “You have to work under (Devendra) Fadnavis. First figure out which bungalow you will get,” Uddhav said.
Uddhav also mentioned the raging legal battle about which group can use the Sena’s symbol and name and expressed regret that the case has not yet been resolved.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) has secured 20 out of the 89 seats it fought on, while the Shinde Sena bagged 57 out of the 80 seats it contested. The assembly election results have rattled the MVA after the Lok Sabha polls a few months back. In the Lok Sabha election, the Sena (UBT) had secured 9 seats and Shinde Sena seven. And only 5 months since that show, the Sena (UBT)’s winning seat tally is far less than Shinde faction’s. The results are a blow for Uddhav: both in terms of his party’s defeat as well as the battle for ‘real’ Sena.
Will Shinde remain the CM?
However, the victory of Mahayuti alliance has thrown up a question whether he will stay as the Chief Minister. When Shinde joined hands with the BJP after the 2022 rebellion, he was made the Chief Minister, even though the BJP was the bigger party in the coalition. Former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had reluctantly agreed to take on the role of Deputy Chief Minister then.
This time around, the BJP has got a clear mandate. It has won 133 out of the 148 seats it contested and the top post will be claimed by the party. Shinde has little say, as the BJP can still stitch a coalition and get the majority mark with its other ally, Ajit Pawar’s NCP, which means Shinde may have to give up his Chief Minister’s post if he is asked to.
Against such a backdrop, Uddhav made the “work under Fadnavis” comment. Shinde will need to vacate Varsha, the official residence of the Maharashtra Chief Minister, if he has to relinquish the top post. Uddhav had to leave the CM’s bungalow Varsha after the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government was toppled due to Shinde’s rebellion.
