The Samajwadi Party announced on Saturday its decision to quit the Maha Vikas Aghadi, citing a newspaper advertisement and a social media post by a close aide of Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray that hailed the demolition of the Babri Masjid.
Maharashtra SP unit chief Abu Azmi said the decision to leave was prompted by Shiv Sena (UBT) secretary and MLC Milind Narwekar’s post on X, that celebrated the 1992 demolition with a quote from the party’s late founder, Bal Thackeray.
The post included an image of the mosque’s demolition alongside Thackeray’s words: “I am proud of those who did this.” It also featured photos of Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, his son Aaditya Thackeray, and Narwekar himself.
“An advertisement was given by Shiv Sena (UBT) in a newspaper congratulating those who demolished Babri masjid. His (Uddhav Thackeray’s) aide has also posted on X hailing the demolition of the mosque,” Azmi said, as PTI reported.
Azmi added that he had informed SP president Akhilesh Yadav of the decision.
“If anyone in the MVA speaks such language, what is the difference between the BJP and them? Why should we stay with them?” Azmi asked.
MVA defeat and internal rifts
The development comes in the wake of MVA’s poor performance in Maharashtra’s Assembly elections, where the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance swept the state. The SP had contested nine seats but managed to win just two.
Azmi slammed the MVA leadership, saying, “We were not part of strategies or ticket distribution. What is the use of continuing in MVA? They don’t talk to us.”
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The MVA was formed in 2019 when Uddhav Thackeray pledged a secular agenda to gain the support of Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party. However, Azmi accused Thackeray of reverting to his earlier positions after the Assembly defeat.
A senior Congress leader downplayed the fallout, saying, “Every party has the right to take its own decision. After the (MVA’s) good performance in Lok Sabha, all smaller parties clamoured to rally around Congress. Now, after the defeat, they want to take their independent position,” the leader said.
Azmi, who represents the Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar seat, also reignited the debate over electronic voting machines (EVMs), calling for their replacement with ballot papers. “There are doubts about the functioning of EVMs. It is being said they can be hacked and manipulated,” he said.