Shiv Sena-UBT leaders Sanjay Raut and Vinayak Raut claimed that 22 MLAs and 9 Lok Sabha MPs are unhappy with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and want to end their ties. The MPs and MLAs feel restless as they know that the issue of disqualification of 16 MLAs, including Shinde, is being decided by the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker. The MLAs allegedly feel deprived of developmental funds for their constituencies. Another key leader of the Shinde group, Gajanan Kirtikar, has voiced his dissatisfaction with the BJP’s alleged discriminatory attitude towards them and how public issues related to their respective constituencies remain unresolved. The Shiv Sena has expressed its desire to contest 22 of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state, but it is not appreciated by BJP. The Shinde-led Shiv Sena may have to be content with a BJP dole of around half a dozen seats in Lok Sabha and could be pushed into relative insignificance after the 2024 Assembly elections.
Shiv Sena is a political party in India that was founded in 1966 by Bal Thackeray. The party’s ideology is based on promoting Marathi identity and Hindu nationalism.
Sanjay Raut is a politician and journalist who is the executive editor of the Marathi newspaper Saamana. He is also a member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament. Vinayak Raut is a member of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament, representing the Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg constituency in Maharashtra.
