Mumbai: Is the camp of crossover Shiv Sena MLAs led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde already a house divided? Going by the words of the Yuva Sena chief and former minister, Aaditya Thackeray, on Sunday, it would seem so. Aaditya claimed that a vertical split among the rebel legislators was bound to surface shortly. “There are two groups: one comprising legislators coerced into crossing over while the other comprised legislators with monstrous ambitions,” claimed Aaditya, who is conducting a ‘loyalty’ tour, especially in the constituencies of rebel legislators, with a resolve to defeat them in the next assembly elections. He claimed that those legislators who had been forcibly made to join the Shinde camp, were desperately eager to come back and join the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena.
Aaditya said the doors of Matoshree (Thackeray residence) were, are and would always be open for those wanting to return to the party fold.
“There is no anger or hatred in our minds about you (rebel MLAs). We used to consider you Shiv Sainiks, we believed in you,’’ he noted.
However, he challenged the rebel legislators saying, “If there is any shame or courage left, resign and go to the polls.” “No matter how much you give some people, they will not be happy and will continue to complain. However, a division in the legislators from Shinde camp will be visible soon,” he declared. Aaditya’s revelation came ahead of a slew of petitions from the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena and the Eknath Shinde camp slated for hearing on July 11 in the Supreme Court.
The younger Thackeray was echoing the line taken by his father and party president Uddhav Thackeray, who had dared rebel legislators to resign and face mid-term elections in the state. The former forest minister, Sanjay Rathod, who had jumped to the Shinde camp, announced that rebel leaders were ready to return to Matoshree and hinted that the chorus was growing. However, he insisted that Thackeray should immediately banish his coterie.
Aaditya’s disclosure comes days after cracks surfaced between the Shinde camp and its ally, the BJP, over BJP leader Kirit Somaiya’s ‘mafia raj’ barb against Shiv Sena president and former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray. Several legislators from the Shinde camp slammed Somaiya but threatened that they would not tolerate insults to Thackeray as they were least bothered about power.
The statement by Aaditya also comes at a time when several aspirants are openly staking claim for ministerial berths. Rifts have surfaced among rebel legislators as they are engaged in making serious allegations against each other even before the cabinet expansion by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
