Will Fadnavis Surprise Eknath Shinde? Shiv Sena Claims 22 Rebel MLAs Will Join BJP

Mumbai, 24th October 2022: The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena claimed in its mouthpiece Saamana on Sunday that 22 of the 40 rebel Shiv Sena MLAs would soon join the BJP. In its weekly column, Shiv Sena has also taken a dig at Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari for being inactive during rain and drought. Uddhav’s Shiv Sena has claimed that making Eknath Shinde the Chief Minister is a temporary arrangement of the BJP.

“Now everyone has understood that his (Shinde’s) Chief Minister’s uniform will be taken off anytime,” the Rokhthok column in Saamana claimed.

Shiv Sena said in Saamana, “The Shinde faction’s claim of success in the Gram Panchayat and Sarpanch elections of Maharashtra is false. At least 22 MLAs of the Shinde group are angry. It seems clear that most of these MLAs will merge with the BJP.” Shiv Sena has alleged that BJP will continue to use Shinde for its benefit.

The column further said, “Shinde’s contribution to development as CM of Maharashtra is not visible. Devendra Fadnavis is seen everywhere. Shinde has no influence in Delhi. Fadnavis went to Delhi on Tuesday.” As part of the ambitious strategy to bring Mumbai out of slums, the Maharashtra government got the railway ministry’s approval for land for the Dharavi redevelopment project.

The Shiv Sena has said, “The entire credit for the redevelopment of Dharavi goes to Fadnavis. The Chief Minister of the state is nowhere in the announcement of this important project.:

Meanwhile, there is speculation that some Congress MLAs, including senior leader Ashok Chavan, are likely to join the BJP. However, when Congress was asked, they denied it saying that “it is just a baseless rumour.”