Will not take back MLAs who defected for power and money: Uddhav Thackeray

MUMBAI: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday declared that he would not take back the MLAs and leaders who defected to the rival Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena for power and pelf but would welcome those who were forced to join Shinde. “I will allow the return of officer-bearers and local leaders but will not take back the traitor MLAs who left for power and money,” he said.

The announcement was made while inducting former Dombivli corporator Dipesh Mhatre, who joined the Thackeray-led party on Sunday along with seven other former corporators. The list includes Mhatre’s elder brother Jayesh, who is also a former corporator.

Mhatre, who went with Shinde when the latter split the Shiv Sena in 2022, was working as the state secretary of the Yuva Sena. Thackeray welcomed him back into the party along with his supporters at his residence, Matoshree, in Bandra East. He is likely to be the Sena (UBT) candidate for the Dombivli assembly constituency, which is represented by BJP minister Ravindra Chavan.

While welcoming Mhatre and his supporters, Thackeray announced his policy concerning the re-entry of defectors currently in the Shinde-led Shiv Sena: to not allow the “traitors” who toppled his government but to permit local leaders, office bearers and party workers to return to the original party. “After the split in the Shiv Sena, many local party leaders and workers were forced to leave the party through various tactics,” he said. “Now many of them want to return to the original party. I will welcome them back. But I will never allow the return of the traitors who overthrew the government for money and power.”

Thackeray added that many leaders like Mhatre left the party, as they were misguided by traitors who claimed that Thackeray and the Shiv Sena had abandoned the ideology of party founder Balasaheb Thackeray and also compromised Hindutva. “Many such leaders working in different areas of the state with the traitors’ party have begun realising that they were misguided and so have come back to the party,” he said.

“Kalyan-Dombivli was the bastion of the Shiv Sena and Hindutva,” continued Thackeray. “This region has a lot of traitors, and now all of you need to clean the blot they have made on the saffron flag and make Kalyan-Dombivli a stronghold of the Shiv Sena once again,” he urged. “I am happy to welcome Deepesh and his supporters to the party.

“Now I will dole out some punishment to Deepesh,” he quipped. “He will have to work harder for the party organisation in Dombivli and Kalyan. If he had taken this decision before the Lok Sabha elections, our party could have ended the Dombivli MP’s reign of terror.”

Fight me, not my son, CM challenges Thackeray

Chief minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday slammed Uddhav Thackeray for making a statement against his son, MP Shrikant Shinde. “Why are you fighting against my son? If you have courage to fight, fight with his father,” challenged Shinde. He was addressing a public gathering of gram rozgar sevaks organised by his party on Sunday evening, at which MPs such as Shrikant Shinde and Ravindra Waikar were present.

On Sunday afternoon, Thackeray, while welcoming Dipesh Mhatre back into the party, referred to Shrikant Shinde as a “kaarta” (brat). CM Shinde took note of Thackeray’s statement and slammed him. “Today he targeted my son, calling him a brat,” he said. “Before calling him that, take a look at his performance report card as a member of parliament.”

Shinde also said that he toppled the MVA government without fear, which was why the people of Maharashtra were getting the benefit of several government schemes. “In the coming elections, people will definitely acknowledge us for the schemes our government is implementing for them,” he said.