'Will Create A New Shiv Sena': CM Thackeray Slams BJP & Shinde Amid Maharashtra Political Crisis

“Those who want to leave are free to go openly…. I will create a new Shiv Sena, Thackeray said.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

Source : Getty Images

Hitting a combative note, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray challenged dissident leader Eknath Shinde and the BJP on Friday night to try to take away the Shiv Sena cadre and supporters, as well as accused the BJP of trying to put an end to the Sena, news agency PTI reported.

“Those who want to leave are free to go openly…. I will create a new Shiv Sena, Thackeray was quoted by PTI in its report. 

He described the common Shiv Sena members as his "wealth" and said he didn't worry about criticism from others as long as they were with him in a virtual address to party corporators.

He said that the Shiv Sena had been "betrayed by its own people" since his administration was in disarray with the majority of Sena MLAs joining Eknath Shinde, who is currently camped out in Guwahati.

While addressing the party workers, CM Thackeray said, “We gave these rebels tickets to contest assembly elections despite many of you being aspirants for the same. These people are disgruntled after getting elected owing to your hard work, and you are standing by the party in this crucial time. I can’t thank you enough."

"I had told Eknath Shinde to look into complaints regarding alliance partners. He told me that legislators were pressurizing him that the Sena should join hands with the BJP. I told him to bring these MLAs to me, let’s discuss this. BJP treated us badly, didn’t honour promises. Many of the rebels have cases filed against them. So if they go with BJP, they will become clean, if they stayed with us, they will go to jail. Is this a sign of friendship?” Thackeray asked.

Referring to Shinde, Thackeray said, "If a Shiv Sena worker is going to become a chief minister, you should go (with the BJP). But if you are, after all, going to become a deputy chief minister, you should have told me, I would have made you deputy chief minister."

Thackeray said that he was prepared to step down as party leader if Sena members believed he was unfit to lead the organisation.

"Shiv Sena is a philosophy...," he said that late Bal Thackeray had started the alliance with the BJP mainly to prevent a split in Hindutva support. "BJP wants to kill it off because they don't want to share the Hindu vote bank with anyone," he claimed.

According to him, the dissident group has no choice except to join the BJP, and even if it is successful in creating a government, it won't survive long since many of its MLAs aren't really satisfied.

Thackeray asserted that the rebels won't succeed in winning the upcoming election.

He criticised Shinde and the BJP and pushed them to try and win back Shiv Sena supporters.

“You have taken away those who got elected. But if you have the courage, try and take away those who got you elected,” he said.

(With Inputs From PTI)