Maharashtra political crisis: MLAs backing Eknath Shinde write to Speaker Narhari Zirwal

Tribune News Service

Vibha Sharma

New Delhi, June 22

Terming “Hindutva” the essence of Shiv Sena, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray today said he was ready to resign even if one disgruntled MLA, accusing him of not performing well or abandoning the ideology (of Hindutva), demands it face to face. Later in the night, he moved out of his official residence Varsha to his private bungalow Matoshree.

Editorial: Power play in Maharashtra

While Uddhav challenged the opposers to come and take the resignation letter from him, he also questioned: “How do you know the next CM will be from the Shiv Sena?” Stating that he was not hankering for the chair, Uddhav said: “Why make statements from Surat and other places? Come and tell me on my face that I am incompetent to handle the posts of CM and Shiv Sena president. I will resign immediately.” Uddhav, who is facing charges of “diluting the Hindutva ideology of the party and being inaccessible to cadres,” said he accepted the post despite having no previous experience on the insistence of NCP chief Sharad Pawar to take forward Bal Thackeray’s legacy.

Role of Speaker, Guv critical

• According to Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, legislators can be disqualified on grounds of defection
• Anti-defection law allows party to merge with another provided two-thirds of its MLAs are in favour of merger

More maha rebels headed to Assam

• More rebels en route to join Shinde in Guwahati: Sources
• Among Shinde supporters, 7 are Independents and some are from smaller parties

The number game

• 56 Sena members in 288-member Maha Assembly
• 46 MLAs pledging support, claims rebel Shinde
• 37 MLAs’ support needed by Eknath Shinde to evade anti-defection law
• BJP has 105 MLAs, NCP 54, Cong 44; magic mark is 145

Aaditya changes bio

• Amid the crisis, Aaditya Thackeray dropped his ministerial credentials from his social media handles

“I have my resignation letter ready, come and take it from me,” Uddhav said on a day “34 MLAs” wrote to Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Narhari Zirwal, backing dissident Eknath Shinde, who is currently camping in Guwahati and demanding that the Sena should return to the NDA fold.

According to these 34 MLAs, Shinde remains the legislature party leader of the Shiv Sena.

Ready to resign: cm

Come and tell me on my face that I am incompetent... I will resign immediately. —Uddhav Thackeray, MaharashtraCM

Another chartered plane with four MLAs from Maharashtra reached Guwahati on Wednesday to join the rebel Shiv Sena legislators who had reached the city earlier in the day, sources said.

Though the BJP claims no hand in the Sena’s “internal matters”, sources said former CM Devendra Fadnavis has told party MLAs to “remain available and on call”. NCP supremo Sharad Pawar and his daughter Supriya Sule met Uddhav at his residence. Congress leader Kamal Nath assured support to the embattled CM on the day Shinde and his group of supporters (46 plus, according to him) landed in another BJP-ruled state Assam in the early hours of Wednesday.

The midnight flight from Surat to Guwahati was believed to have been personally supervised by Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma.

The high drama spanning multiple corners of the country — Mumbai, Surat, Delhi and Guwahati — saw Uddhav putting up a brave front at the Cabinet meeting and issuing a whip to Sena MLAs to attend a meeting in the evening, which never happened. Shinde, who claimed MLAs had not revolted against the party and their only wish was to form an alliance with the BJP, called the whip “legally invalid”. Though Shinde claimed the support of 46 plus MLAs, he did not specify how many of them were from the Sena.

To avoid the anti-defection law, Shinde needs the support of at least 37 legislators of the Shiv Sena.

Both Congress and NCP said their MLAs were with them. Though Sena leader Sanjay Raut hinted at dissolving the Assembly, allies NCP and Congress are against the move. Raut said, “At the most what will happen… our government will lose the majority in the state. We can always return to power, but the party’s image is above all.”

Meanwhile, a BJP leader from Delhi filed a complaint against the Maharashtra Chief Minister for allegedly violating the Covid protocol by meeting his supporters, the police said. Uddhav tested positive for the infection on Wednesday.

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