In the wake of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition’s victory over the ruling alliance in the Lok Sabha polls, Maharashtra’s upcoming state elections are expected to be fiercely contested.
Former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray addressed the media today, stating that while the Opposition alliance of Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) will announce its Chief Minister candidate at an appropriate time, it is the BJP-led ruling coalition that needs to present the “face of failure” first.
When asked about the MVA’s decision on a Chief Minister candidate for the approaching Assembly polls, Thackeray emphasized the recent success of the MVA in the general elections, where they defeated the alliance of BJP, Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde), and NCP (Ajit Pawar) across the 48 Lok Sabha seats.
The Monsoon Session of the Maharashtra Assembly commenced today, bringing together top leaders from both the government and the Opposition. An awkward moment was captured on video between Uddhav Thackeray and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis as they waited for the lift at the Assembly building. The video, now viral on social media, shows a brief exchange of words between the two leaders.
In another lighter moment, BJP minister Chandrakant Patil handed Thackeray a bar of chocolate, to which Thackeray quipped, “Tomorrow you will give chocolate to the people of Maharashtra,” alluding to potential voter incentives in the forthcoming state budget.
Thackeray also criticized the central government over the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) irregularities and referenced reports of rainwater leaking into the Ram Temple’s sanctum sanctorum in Ayodhya, which the temple committee has denied. “This is a leakage government in Delhi and here. It happened in Ayodhya and here too,” he remarked, targeting both the central and Maharashtra governments over various issues, including paper leaks.
Responding to Fadnavis’ accusations that more competitive exam papers leaked during Thackeray’s tenure, he retorted, “This is one of their fake narratives. Most of our exams happened during Covid-19, were online, and whenever issues occurred, we re-conducted exams.”
The forthcoming Maharashtra election is crucial, considering the significant splits in two major political parties in the state over the last two years. In the 2019 state election, the BJP and the undivided Shiv Sena fought together and won a majority. However, the alliance fell apart over the rotational chief ministership issue, leading Thackeray to form a government with the Congress and Sharad Pawar’s NCP.
In 2022, Thackeray’s government was toppled after Eknath Shinde led a mutiny, splitting the Shiv Sena and forming a new government with the BJP. Additionally, Ajit Pawar’s rebellion against his uncle Sharad Pawar resulted in another split within the NCP, with Ajit Pawar joining the state government.
