The Shiv Sena on Tuesday sacked Eknath Shinde as its legislative party leader after the Maharashtra minister reportedly moved to a hotel in BJP-ruled Gujarat with 21 other MLAs. Sewri MLA Ajay Chaudhary will be the new Shiv Sena legislative party leader, ANI reported. The Sena had elected Eknath Shinde as its legislative party leader in November 2019.


Eknath Shinde, in a cryptic tweet, said "we will never cheat for power and never abandon teachings of Bal Thackeray". "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," Shinde tweeted.


Earlier in the day, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut, targeting the BJP, said there was a conspiracy to topple the Uddhav Thackeray government in the "same pattern as in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan". "Shiv Sena is a party of loyalists. We won't let that happen," he told reporters.



READ | 'Will Continue To Support Shiv Sena... Their Internal Matter': Sharad Pawar On Maharashtra Political Turmoil


Speaking in Delhi, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said there was an attempt to pull down the Maharashtra government, which he said was happening for the third time. Calling it an "internal matter" of the Sena, Pawar said he was confident that Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray would be able to handle the situation and the MVA government would last its full five-year term.


Amid the turmoil in Maharashtra, Congress deputed its senior leader and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath as AICC observer in the state.


Reacting to the development, Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil said Eknath Shinde had not sent any proposal to the party for government formation. Addressing the media, Patil said "anything can happen in politics at any time".


"It's too early to say anything, we're currently waiting and keeping an eye on the situation. Neither Eknath Shinde has sent proposal to BJP for govt formation nor BJP has sent any proposal to him," Patil further said.


The sudden disappearance of Shinde and some party MLAs has put a question mark on the stability of the MVA dispensation in Maharashtra.


In the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly, Shiv Sena has 55 MLAS, NCP (53), Congress (44), Bahujan Vikas Agahdi (three), Samajwadi Party, AIMIM and Prahar Janshakti Party two each. MNS, CPI-M, PWP, Swabhimani Paksha, Rashtriya Samaj Party, Jansurajya Shakti Party and Krantikari Shetkari Paksha have one MLA each. There are 13 independent MLAs. The opposition BJP has 106 MLAs.