Uddhav Thackeray met Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Nagpur on Tuesday for the first time after the polls and congratulated him, despite his party’s constant criticism of EVMs after its crushing defeat in last month’s Assembly elections.
Aaditya Thackeray, son of Uddhav Thackeray and a prominent leader of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), who attended the meeting, said the move was a start in the right direction towards cooperation for the state’s benefit.
“Our party chief Uddhav Thackeray met Chief Minister Fadnavis and Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar today. What we have done is a step forward that both sides should show political maturity and work together in the interest of Maharashtra the country. We may be in the opposition and they may be in the ruling coalition, but we are all elected representatives of the people and they (the ruling parties) can also listen to us, which may lead to some good things happening,” he said.
According to sources, Uddhav congratulated Fadnavis on the victory of the ruling coalition during the courtesy meeting, which was held in Fadnavis’ chambers at the Vidhan Bhavan in Nagpur, where the Assembly’s winter session is currently underway.
Thackeray, who headed the unified Shiv Sena at the time, was an ally of the BJP until 2019. However, he parted ways with the alliance after a disagreement over whether he or Fadnavis should take on the role of chief minister. In a surprising turn of events, he allied with the NCP and Congress to assume Maharashtra’s top position.
However, Eknath Shinde, a key figure in Thackeray’s party, rebelled and supported the BJP, bringing the majority of Shiv Sena MLAs with him. This resulted to the collapse of Thackeray’s administration in 2022. Fadnavis was appointed as Shinde’s deputy and he later became the chief minister.
When Ajit Pawar rebelled and established an independent faction of the NCP the next year, the coalition gained another ally.
Since the BJP and Shiv Sena split, Fadnavis and Thackeray have been at odds and have frequently criticised one another, citing their respective interpretations of “Hindutva.”
Thackeray’s Shiv Sena, the Congress and Sharad Pawar’s NCP faction put on an incredible show in the Lok Sabha elections, taking 30 of Maharashtra’s 48 seats. However, they were devastated in the Assembly elections last month, taking only 46 of 288 seats, while the BJP took home 132.
Following the defeat, the Congress, Pawar’s NCP and Thackeray’s Shiv Sena boycotted the swearing-in ceremony and alleged that the ruling coalition’s overwhelming victory was due to tampered EVMs.
Also Read: Sensex Plunges by 1,000 Points: Key Drivers Behind Today’s Market Crash
