Maha govt on a knife’s edge as leader splits Sena’s flock

Swapnil Rawal and Dhaval Kulkarni

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government plunged into crisis on Tuesday morning after simmering discontent within the Shiv Sena boiled over and a senior minister and around 30 legislators from the party moved to a resort in neighbouring Gujarat, in a precursor to a possible split in the party and a threat to the survival of the ruling coalition.

Urban development minister Eknath Shinde left Mumbai on Monday night, shortly after voting ended in the legislative council polls, where the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) suffered an embarrassing defeat as 12 members of the Sena appeared to cross-vote in favour of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate. This was the second defeat of the alliance after the shock loss of its candidate in the Rajya Sabha polls.

Shinde’s move, people familiar with the matter said, seems to have been driven more by internal Sena factors — chief minister Uddhav Thackeray’s illness and relative isolation; and the growing prominence of Sanjay Raut

A five-star hotel in Surat where Eknath Shinde and other rebel Shiv Sena legislators have camped in has turned into a fortress, with 400 policemen guarding it. Barricades have been placed on entry and exit points to prevent “unauthorised” persons from entering the premises.

SURAT HOTEL TURNS INTO A FORTRESS

His rise from an auto-rickshaw driver in Thane to the minister in the MVA government is the story of a passion-driven Sainik. From a seat at the head table to fomenting rebellion in the ranks from a hotel in Surat, what compelled Eknath Shinde, 58, to take this drastic step?

EKNATH SHINDE MAKES HIS MOVE

NCP chief Sharad Pawar alleged a third attempt was being made to topple the MVA government but was confident that CM Uddhav Thackeray would resolve Shiv Sena’s “internal matter”. He said that there are “no differences in the alliance and all have full confidence” in Thackeray.

UDDHAV WILL RESOLVE CRISIS, SAYS PAWAR