Shah finally breaks the ice with Uddhav

Shah finally breaks the ice with Uddhav

FPJ BureauUpdated: Saturday, June 01, 2019, 08:55 AM IST
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Mumbai :  Seeking to put aside speculation about a rift over the State assembly poll seat-sharing in Shiv Sena-BJP alliance, BJP president Amit Shah met Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray here on Thursday night.

On his first visit to Mumbai after taking over as BJP president, Shah drove to Matoshree, the Thackeray family residence in Bandra and met Uddhav.

Shah arrived at 10 pm, almost half an hour behind schedule.

State BJP president Devendra Fadnavis and leader of the opposition in the legislative council Vinod Tawde accompanied Shah.

The very fact that they met signals that the more than two decades-old alliance is still on track, a senior Sena leader said.

Until Wednesday, it wasn’t clear if Shah would meet the Shiv Sena chief at his residence, which has almost been a tradition with top BJP leaders visiting Mumbai, since the Matoshree visit did not figure in Shah’s elaborate minute-by-minute schedule.

However, Tawde had announced on Thursday morning that Shah had accepted Uddhav’s invitation and would visit Matoshree in the night.

Earlier, Shah also visited the memorial (Smriti Sthal) of late Bal Thackeray at Shivaji Park here.

Buoyed by the results of Lok Sabha polls when BJP earned more seats than Shiv Sena in Maharashtra, BJP has been looking for a better share in the seat-sharing formula for assembly elections due in the state in October.

Shah did not speak to reporters when he left Matoshree around 40 minutes later but a senior BJP leader said “All is well with the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance”. Uddhav presented Shah with two books, including one which features the Sena chief’s aerial photography of important forts in the state of Maharashtra, sources said. PTI

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