Mumbai News

Maharashtra: More Mumbai, Konkan MLAs join Shinde camp – Times of India

MUMBAI: Rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde has claimed a strength of 42 party MLAs, with more arriving by the night, including those who had stayed with the party at the start of the revolt. The Shinde group needs 37 MLAs to circumvent the anti-defection law.
The Sena struck out against the rebels by seeking to disqualify 12 MLAs, including Shinde, from their membership in the state assembly. Sena leader Arvind Sawant approached deputy assembly speaker Narhari Zirwal and moved a petition on the grounds that the 12 MLAs had not attended meetings called by the party whip after the rebellion began.
However, a combative Shinde warned the party not to try and threaten him. “Who are you trying to scare? According to the Constitution, the whip is used for functioning within the assembly, not for party meetings. There are many Supreme Court orders on this,” he tweeted.
Lashing out at the party, he said, “We are Shiv Sena pramukh Balasaheb Thackeray’s real Shiv Sena and Shiv Sainiks. We know the law. You have created an illegal group without having the numbers, so we demand action against you.”
In his first statement after the rebellion began, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said the MVA could not be considered a minority government without a floor test. “Whether it is in the minority or not can only be decided in a floor test in the state assembly. The MVA will succeed in the floor test,” Pawar said. He also said the rebel MLAs will have to come to the state assembly for the floor test and “leaders from Assam will not be able to come here to provide guidance”.
In response to a question, Pawar also said the BJP’s hand in the rebellion was obvious. “You can see who has done the organising in Gujarat and Assam,” he said, countering deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar’s statement that so far no BJP hand could be seen in the revolt.
Through the day, Sena legislators arrived in Guwahati to join the coup. While most of the early dissidents were from rural Maharashtra, more MLAs from the party’s bastions of Mumbai and Konkan broke away on Thursday. They included Deepak Kesarkar (Sawantwadi), Mangesh Kudalkar (Kurla) and Sada Sarvankar (Mahim). Sarvankar had backed the party when the revolt broke out. By evening, agriculture minister Dada Bhuse. Digras (Yavatmal) MLA Sanjay Rathod and Thane legislator Ravindra Phatak, who had been sent as an emissary to placate Shinde, also joined him.
The Sena claimed it was in touch with 21 rebel MLAs who would return to the party. Sena MP Sanjay Raut tried to placate the dissidents by claiming the party was prepared to exit the MVA, which has been their key demand. “But the MLAs making this demand should return to Mumbai and place this proposal before party chief Uddhav Thackeray and then it will be discussed,” Raut said.
Deputy speaker of state assembly Narhari Zirwal backed the Sena over Eknath Shinde’s dissident faction in the clash on the choice of group leader of Sena’s legislature party on Thursday. He said he would examine the letter sent by the Shinde faction, which reappointed him to the post.
In response to CM Uddhav Thackeray’s emotional appeal to the rebels on Wednesday, Shinde released a hard-hitting letter from dissident MLA Sanjay Shirsat. The letter accused Thackeray of being inaccessible and flanked by a coterie which did not allow Sena MLAs to meet him. The letter said party MLAs were kept waiting for hours outside the chief minister’s residence and finally left in frustration. “Why were Sena MLAs who have been elected from constituencies of 3-4 lakh voters insulted in this manner?” he asked.
It was Sena MLAs who had persuaded Shinde to revolt, Shirsat said. “His doors were always open to us. It was Shinde who helped resolve our problems. Party MLAs persuaded Shinde to take this step (or revolt) for the rights of all the legislators,” Shirsat wrote.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/maharashtra-more-mumbai-konkan-mlas-join-shinde-camp/articleshow/92423230.cms