As his government stands it’s test for stability after a rebellion, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday said rebel minister Eknath Shinde will come back to the party fold.
At a meeting of Sena leaders last evening, Mr Thackeray was quoted as saying: “Talks with Eknath Shinde are on. I spoke to him. He will return. NCP is also with us.”
As per sources, Mr Thackeray had asked Mr Shinde to reconsider and return to the fold. The rebel leader, however, said that so far, he has not taken any decision or signed any document, and that he has taken this step for the betterment of the party.
If reports are to be believed, Mr Shinde has been insisting to get back in alliance with the BJP, and breakup with current allies NCP and Congress.
“Some are saying that we should go with BJP. But how do we do that. We were with them and have suffered. Why should we go with them,” the Sena chief reportedly told party leaders.
The Shiv Sena supremo underscored that ‘all MLAs will be with us soon’, sending a message of unity, the sources said. Mr Thackeray stressed that the Congress and NCP are with the party.
While MVA partners, including the Sena, has blamed the BJP for engineering this rebellion, Mr Shinde himself has cited an ideological reason for this drastic move.
“Balasaheb has taught us Hindutva. We have never and will never cheat for power regarding Balasaheb’s thoughts and Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Saheb’s teachings,” Mr Shinde had tweeted in Marathi on Tuesday.
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