‘Why seek votes in Balasaheb’s name, has Modi wave abated?’: Sena asks Fadnavis

The Shiv Sena in an editorial in its mouthpiece Saamana reacted sharply to Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis’s appeal to vote for the BJP to uphold the ideals of late Sena supremo Bal Thackeray

Reacting to Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis’s appeal to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to uphold the ideals of late Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray, the Sena on Tuesday said that the party is a votary of Hindutva but not a “slave” of the BJP.

Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. (ANI file photo)

“Fadnavis and other leaders have held Balasaheb’s dream close to their heart. But these people did not remember Balasaheb when they snapped their alliance with the Shiv Sena in 2014. They did not even remember Balasaheb when going back on their promise to give the Shiv Sena the chief minister’s position in 2019... the only truth is that they want to break the unity of the Marathi manoos in Mumbai and that is why they want to wound the Shiv Sena,” said an editorial in the Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamana.

The newspaper has Shiv Sena president and former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray as the editor and Rajya Sabha MP and spokesperson Sanjay Raut as the executive editor.

It added that the fulfillment of Thackeray senior’s dream will be to trounce the Shiv Sena rebels led by chief minister Eknath Shinde and the BJP.

“... why are you asking for votes in Balasaheb’s name? Has your era of Modi, (and) the Modi wave abated? These people want to defeat the Shiv Sena in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections and are using Balasaheb’s name to defeat the Shiv Sena. They want to make a BJP nominee, who has found favour with the powers that be in Delhi, the mayor of Mumbai and the Shinde camp agrees with this,” said the editorial.

The Shiv Sena charged that the BJP and the Shinde camp had decided to divide Mumbai and Thane between themselves. “Again, treachery is on while taking the name of Balasaheb,” the editorial said.

“We are pro-Hindutva. We are not the slaves of the BJP. We are the honest servants of the BJP, not the servants of (the BJP leadership in) Delhi,” it warned.