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Shiv Sena's rebel faction warns of legal battle if not given recognition
Speaking to media virtually, Deepak Kesarkar, the group's spokesperson, also said, among other things, that the rebels continue to be in the Uddhav Thackeray-led party and have only separated their faction.
Speaking to media virtually, Shiv Sena legislator Deepak Kesarkar, spokesperson of the Eknath Shinde-led rebel group of the party, on Saturday demanded recognition for the rebel faction. “Recognition should be given to our faction; if it isn't given, we will go to court and and prove our existence and numbers. Though we have numbers, we respect CM Uddhav Thackeray and hence won't speak against him. We must follow the path on which we fought assembly elections,” Kesarkar said, as quoted by news agency ANI.
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Kesarkar, the MLA from the Sawantwadi assembly seat, also denied that the faction would merge with a different party. “We're still in the Shiv Sena. misunderstanding that we've left the party. We've just separated our faction. We've two-third majority to follow the path we wanted. Our new leader (Eknath Shinde) chosen by majority,” he added.
The former minister was speaking shortly after the Sena, in its national executive meet held in Mumbai, decided to write to the Election Commission seeking to bar any party from using ‘Shiv Sena’ and ‘Balasaheb Thackeray’ in its name.
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The party's move came after the rebels, earlier today, decided to name their group the ‘Shiv Sena Balasaheb,’ after the party's founder, and Uddhav Thackeray's father, Bal Thackeray.
Meanwhile, Kesarkar also denied that Maharashtra's opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was behind their rebellion'. He said, “No party is paying for our expenses. Our leader called us and we came and stayed here. We will pay the expenses,” he explained.
