A disagreement over their opinions on right-wing ideologue VD Savarkar prompted the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena side to issue a warning on Friday that its alliance with Congress, a partner with opposing ideologies, could be in jeopardy.
“Uddhav [Thackeray] ji might say something. Sanjay Raut announced in the morning that we might not go with the MVA (Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition). That response from the party is grave. What else do you require?” Arvind Sawant, a Shiv Sena lawmaker, stated.
When asked whether the coalition will continue, he also restated the group’s criticism of the BJP for working with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of Jammu and Kashmir, an association that is just as absurd.
Sanjay Raut, a spokesman for the Shiv Sena, earlier told: “We care about Savarkar’s issue and support his philosophy. This topic shouldn’t have been raised by Congress.” Shiv Sena legislator and Uddhav Thackeray’s son Aaditya Thackeray stated: “Yesterday itself, we made our views very clear. Whatever Uddhav Thackeray and Sanjay Raut may have said, for the time being that is where we stand.”
Senior Congressman Jairam Ramesh claimed that Rahul Gandhi had not “targeted” Savarkar but rather was articulating a historical fact in an apparent attempt to contain the damage. “Sanjay Raut and I chatted today. We consent to being at odds. He rejected the notion that it would make Maha Vikas Aghadi less effective. The MVA won’t be affected “said he.
Following the 2019 elections in Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena formed the MVA coalition with the Congress and Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress party (NCP). The action was taken in response to a split with longtime ally BJP over sharing the Chief Minister’s post.
Since then, the party has fought allegations that it formed the unorthodox coalition to seize power in India’s richest state, which is home to Mumbai, the nation’s financial and entertainment hub, and keep the BJP out.
When party leader Eknath Shinde crossed over with the majority of MLAs to support the BJP and subsequently become Chief Minister, the arrangement was at the centre of a rebellion within the Shiv Sena earlier this year.
Last week, remarks made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticising Vinayak Damodar Savarkar for pleading for mercy from the British when imprisoned brought the tensions between the right-wing Shiv Sena and its centre-left alliance to the forefront once more.
Mr. Gandhi characterised Savarkar as a coward, contrasting him with the leaders of the Congress, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Vallabhbhai Patel.
Uddhav Thackeray refuted the claim that he was “dumping his father Bal Thackeray’s Hindutva legacy,” claiming that his Shiv Sena side had “immense reverence” for Savarkar.
