Fadnavis raps Sena on cross-party support in MLC polls, asks Shinde to rein in rebels

MUMBAI: Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday expressed displeasure at the growing differences among the Mahayuti allies ahead of the October 23 biennial elections to five seats in the state’s legislative council

MUMBAI: Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday expressed displeasure at the growing differences among the Mahayuti allies ahead of the October 23 biennial elections to five seats in the state’s legislative council. Warning that individual leaders backing candidates outside the alliance’s official line was inappropriate, Fadnavis also called upon Shiv Sena chief and deputy CM Eknath Shinde to take cognisance of such instances and ensure that alliance discipline was maintained.

Mumbai, India - June 21, 2026: CM Devendra Fadnavis(C), Dy CM Sunetra Pawar(L) and Dy CM Eknath Shinde(R) during the press conference ahead of the upcoming Monsoon Session, Sahaydri Guest House, in Mumbai, India, on Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/Hindustan Times) (Anshuman Poyrekar/HT Photo)

Fadnavis’s remarks came after the Shiv Sena’s Sillod MLA Abdul Sattar openly extended support to Pratapsinh Patil, the opposition NCP (SP) candidate for the Aurangabad Graduates’ constituency, despite the Mahayuti fielding NCP candidate Satish Chavan from the seat. In fact, Shiv Sena minister Sanjay Shirsat too had earlier opposed Chavan’s candidature but changed his stand on Saturday.

Fadnavis proclaimed that in his view, Shirsat had clearly stated his party’s support to Satish Chavan’s candidature. “Thus, if an individual leader takes a different position, it cannot be treated as the party’s official stand,” he said. “However, I expect the Shiv Sena president (Eknath Shinde) to take cognisance of the matter and ensure that individual leaders do not undermine the unity of the alliance when all partners are expected to work together. Such conduct is not appropriate.”

In the Amravati Teachers’ constituency, the Sena has fielded sitting MLC Kiran Sarnaik. His candidature triggered a revolt among three BJP aspirants, Dr Sangita Shinde-Bonde, Chandrashekhar Bhuyar and Sumit Pawar, who also entered the contest. The BJP on October 12 expelled all three for six years for “anti-party activities” and terminated their primary membership. It has also expelled Nitin Gudadhe, its Amravati rural unit general secretary, for supporting the rebels.

However, the Shiv Sena is yet to initiate disciplinary action against its former MLC Shrikant Deshpande. The latter filed two nominations from the Amravati seat, one as a Sena candidate and the other as an independent, before the Mahayuti had even declared its candidate. Deshpande has been projecting himself as a “true Shiv Sainik of Balasaheb Thackeray” and a close confidant of Shinde. The contrasting responses to rebellion within the two alliance partners have added another dimension to the seat-sharing tensions.

Despite the emerging differences, Fadnavis asserted that the Mahayuti remained united, contrasting it with the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). “I believe the MVA has been divided from the very beginning whereas the Mahayuti is working together as a united alliance,” he said. “I am confident that Mahayuti candidates will win in all five constituencies.”