Maharashtra minister and BJP leader Nitesh Rane has said Shiv Sena workers campaigning for a rival Sena (UBT) candidate in Sindhudurg raised doubts about Deputy CM Eknath Shinde`s past claims that he rebelled against the then MVA government due to “injustice”, reported news agency PTI.
Rane said the situation raised serious doubts about the justification of Shinde`s rebellion in 2022. Notably, the BJP leader`s elder brother, Nilesh Rane, is an MLA from the Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
“Eknath Shinde had claimed he witnessed injustice to Shiv Sena workers under then chief minister and Shiv Sena head Uddhav Thackeray, hence, he rebelled. If he rebelled then, why are his party workers campaigning for Sandesh Parkar, a leader of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and candidate in the Kankavli municipal council elections?” Nitesh Rane asked while speaking to reporters in Sindhudurg district on Saturday evening, reported PTI.
Not only the people of Sindhudurg, but the entire Maharashtra will ask Shinde whether there is any meaning left to his so-called rebellion, the BJP leader said, reported PTI.
The latest outburst against Shinde came at the fag end of the campaigning for the first phase of local body polls, scheduled for December 2, marked by shifting political alliances and one-upmanship bids by leaders of the ruling Mahayuti allies – BJP and Shiv Sena.
Shinde engineered a split in the undivided Shiv Sena in June 2022, leading to the collapse of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.
He then allied with the BJP and became the chief minister, with BJP`s Devendra Fadnavis sworn in as deputy CM.
In February 2024, Maharashtra legislative assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar ruled that Shinde`s faction was the “real Shiv Sena”.
After the BJP emerged as the single largest party in the 2024 assembly polls, Shinde resigned from the post of chief minister in December last year, and Fadnavis became the CM.
Shinde praises Sena MLA Nilesh Rane who took on BJP in Sindhudurg district
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday said Shiv Sena MLA Nilesh Rane, who has taken on the BJP in Sindhudurg district, is a diamond found by the party in the Konkan region.
Addressing a party rally in Malvan, Shinde said Nilesh, the MLA from Kudal constituency, is the strong currency of the Shiv Sena.
“He does not fear anyone because he has learnt it from his father (former chief minister Narayan Rane). Whatever the opposition, he will prevail over them because he has the backing of Eknath Shinde. There is nothing to fear while doing good work. Nilesh Rane is a diamond found by the Shiv Sena in Konkan,” Shinde said.
His remarks come after the Sindhudurg Police registered an FIR against Nilesh Rane on Friday on the charge of trespassing on a BJP supporter`s house, days after the Shiv Sena MLA alleged that bags of cash meant for distribution to voters were found there during his “sting operation”.
The case was filed on Friday at the Malvan police station, based on a complaint filed by BJP worker Vijay Kenavadekar, a police official said on Saturday.
(With inputs from PTI)
