22 MLAs, 9 MPs may quit Shiv Sena: Thackeray's mouthpiece
The Shiv Sena (UBT), led by Uddhav Thackeray, has claimed that 22 MLAs and nine Lok Sabha MPs from Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena were unhappy with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and could resign from the party. In an editorial in its mouthpiece, Saamana, the Shiv Sena (UBT) said the politicians were "feeling suffocated because of step-motherly treatment by the BJP."
'Saamana' called Shiv Sena politicians 'hens and cocks'
The remarks in the Marathi daily came days after MP Gajanan Kirtikar of the Shiv Sena said, "We are part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA)... So our work should be carried out accordingly... We think we are being given step-motherly treatment." The editorial called the MPs and MLAs "hens and cocks" imprisoned in the BJP's coop, which can be slaughtered at any time.
Shiv Sena, BJP's 'love affair' has turned sour: 'Saamana'
The editorial further said the Shiv Sena MPs and MLAs "betrayed" the Thackerays and joined hands with the BJP. However, their "love affair" has turned sour within a year, and there are divorce talks, it added. It claimed that Maharashtra Deputy CM and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis had become the "driver" of CM Shinde, which means that all the power lies with the BJP.
Shinde joined hands with BJP last year
Notably, the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (then undivided) exited the NDA in 2019 and joined hands with the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) to form the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra. After a split in the Shiv Sena in 2022, Shinde, along with his associates, joined hands with the BJP to become the chief minister of the state.
