Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) founder Raj Thackeray has expressed his strong disapproval of the recent political developments in Maharashtra, calling them “disgusting” and a “terrible insult” to the mandate of the voters.
Thackeray also pointed out that it was Sharad Pawar, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief, who introduced the concept of a ‘political coup’ in Maharashtra and suggested that it had now come back to haunt him.
Speaking at his residence in Pune’s Prabhat Road area on Tuesday, Thackeray conveyed his concern over the current situation in view of the uncertainty surrounding the political landscape in Maharashtra.
“What is happening currently is disgusting. If someone takes a public opinion on this, in every home of the state you will get to hear abuses. It’s a terrible insult to the voters… No one can be sure about who is in which party any more. It is an unfortunate situation in Maharashtra,” he said.
Thackeray’s remarks came in the aftermath of Ajit Pawar’s surprising move to join the Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led government, along with eight NCP MLAs, two days earlier. Expressing skepticism about the motivation behind these developments, Thackeray did not rule out the possibility of Sharad Pawar’s involvement.
He suggested, “In 1978, Pawar started this. Before that, it had never happened in Maharashtra. So he started it, and now it’s coming back to him.” It is worth noting that in 1978, Sharad Pawar toppled the government led by Congressman Vasantdada Patil to become the chief minister of Maharashtra.
Furthermore, Thackeray raised questions about the rebel MLAs who joined Ajit Pawar and their true allegiances. He stated, “I feel that some of the people among the rebels – Praful Patel, Dilip Walse Patil, Chhagan Bhujbal – are not the kind of people who would follow Ajit Pawar. Hence, the actions of these three people seem suspect to me.”
Thackeray also highlighted a recent statement made by Ajit Pawar, wherein he mentioned putting up Sharad Pawar’s photos on all the hoardings, which Thackeray found perplexing. He concluded, “Hence, I said that I would not be surprised if in the future, Supriya Sule becomes a Union minister.”
He also denied that there were any demands from MNS workers urging the estranged Thackeray cousins to come together again, reported The Indian Express.