Video: Eknath Shinde, Aaditya Thackeray Attend Meeting Together For First Time After Shiv Sena Split; Here's What Happened

A tense political moment was captured on video when Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray remained seated while Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde entered a legislative assembly meeting, marking their first face-to-face encounter since the Shiv Sena party split.

The incident occurred during a meeting called by the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly to discuss Mumbai's road construction issues. According to reports, Aaditya Thackeray, representing the Shiv Sena (UBT) faction led by his father Uddhav Thackeray, was already present when Shinde arrived late to the meeting.

Video footage that has gone viral on social media shows other attendees standing up as a mark of respect when Shinde entered the room, while Thackeray notably remained seated and even appeared to turn his face away from the Deputy Chief Minister.

This encounter comes days after former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde were seen in the legislature without acknowledging each other, though Uddhav did interact with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis during that session.

The meeting, which focused on Mumbai's road construction projects—a subject on which Aditya Thackeray has previously accused Shinde's administration of corruption—was attended by several MLAs including Varun Sardesai, Amin Patel, Mahesh Sawant, Sana Malik, Jyoti Gaikwad, Manisha Chaudhary, Mihir Kotecha, Prakash Surve, Murji Patel, Bala Nair, Harun Khan, Atul Bhatkhalkar, and Yogesh Sagar, along with Mumbai Municipal Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani.

The tense exchange highlights the ongoing political divisions within Maharashtra following the 2022 split in the Shiv Sena party.