Shinde is likely to be loyal to bellicose Hindutva: Uddhav despises plotting, says ready to resign if rebels wish

Message seems to throw a poser — 'either Shinde or me, decide'

Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray greets supporters gathered outside his private residence Matoshree: PTI Picture

Sanjay K Jha   |   TT  |  New Delhi   |    23.06.22  : Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday asked Shiv Sena MLAs to tell him to his face to relinquish his chair instead of plotting behind his back, playing the emotional card in a salvage bid with the numbers appearing to be stacked against him.

Uddhav had expected around 12 of the rebel MLAs holed up at a Surat hotel since Tuesday to flee in a day or two. But after rebel leader Eknath Shinde shifted to Guwahati in BJP-ruled Assam along with 34 fellow Sena MLAs, he was forced to issue his appeal.

“If Sena MLAs feel I should not be chief minister, let them tell it to my face. If they hesitate to come here now, they can tell me on the phone. But Shiv Sainiks must not betray me,” he said on Facebook Live.

“What of the chief minister’s post — if they don’t want me as Shiv Sena chief, I shall relinquish that post too.”

He added: “They (rebel MLAs) all know under what circumstances we had formed the alliance with the NCP and the Congress. The Congress and the NCP had reposed faith in me. But if my own people don’t have faith in me, what can I do? Let them tell me, ‘You are not good enough for CM’ and I shall step aside. I shall be happy to see another Shiv Sainik in this chair.”

The cleverly crafted message seemed to throw a poser before party workers and MLAs — whether Shinde was more acceptable as the Sena leader than Uddhav.

The chief minister tried to rebut Shinde’s allegation of a dilution of the Sena ideology, asserting that the party had not abandoned Hindutva and that there was no difference between his Sena and that of his father, Balasaheb Thackeray.

Uddhav’s objective seems to be to evoke reactions from the party workers on the leadership question. If there is an outpouring of emotions on the ground in Uddhav’s favour after his appeal, some of the rebels may come under pressure, denying Shinde the numbers he needs to escape the anti-defection law.

While two MLAs have fled Surat to rejoin Uddhav, a few more daring to break ranks can cause alarm in the Shinde camp.

Uddhav contested the allegations of inaccessibility, saying he had fought valiantly against Covid during the first and second waves before poor health curtailed his outings.

He spoke of how the tree lamented that the axe had felled it with the help of wood (handle) attached to it, stressing his sense of betrayal at a time the absence of criticism against the rebel MLAs on the ground would be worrying him.

Stray protests have taken place but the social pressure Uddhav had expected to be exerted on the rebels’ families has not materialised.

Sena workers did come out in greater numbers to express support for Uddhav after the appeal. Uddhav, however, has taken a huge gamble as the Sena cadre, long accustomed to the idea of a robust leadership, is more receptive to fire and brimstone than what it might see as weak sentimentality.

Uddhav’s appeal comes against speculation about a cabinet resolution for dissolution of the Assembly. The chief minister has indicated he might leave his official residence, Varsha, and move back into his ancestral home, Matoshree.

It’s clear, though, that Uddhav hasn’t thrown in the towel. NCP leader Sharad Pawar and Congress leaders met him soon after his appeal and discussed future action.

If Uddhav does lose his chair, Shinde is expected to shift towards bellicose Hindutva.

१. गेल्या अडीच वर्षात म.वि.आ. सरकारचा फायदा फक्त घटक पक्षांना झाला,आणि शिवसैनिक भरडला गेला.

२. घटक पक्ष मजबूत होत असताना शिवसैनिकांचे - शिवसेनेचे मात्र पद्धतशीर खच्चीकरण होत आहे. #HindutvaForever

— Eknath Shinde - एकनाथ शिंदे (@mieknathshinde) June 22, 2022

Shinde has tweeted that the Sena should return to the BJP’s embrace and that the Congress and the NCP alone had gained politically in the last two-and-a-half years.

There had been speculation about Uddhav offering the chief minister’s chair to Shinde to save the coalition government but it didn’t happen. Shinde’s pro-BJP noises will make it difficult for him to return to the coalition.

Speculation also swirled about the Sena’s impending return to the BJP fold on the pretext of the rebellion. The Congress and the NCP have, however, dismissed this conspiracy theory.