NEW DELHI: Rajya Sabha MP and Shiv Sena’s deputy leader Priyanka Chaturvedi on Thursday said the party was confident of remaining in office in Maharashtra. She said chief minister Uddhav Thackeray enjoyed the support of the majority of party MLAs and this would be proven in due course.
Talking exclusively to TOI amid the rebellion by Maharashtra minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde, Chaturvedi said the party was intact.
She said, “The Shiv Sena may have faced a rebellion but the party is intact. Uddhav Thackeray enjoys the support of the majority of party MLAs.”
Chaturvedi claimed that two Shiv Sena MLAs – Kailash Patil and Nitin Deshmukh – had returned to the party fold after having gone to Assam where Shinde is camping along with some MLAs, including independents.
She further claimed that 18 more MLAs would come back to Mumbai and support the Thackeray government. “Have patience,” she said.
Coming down heavily on Shinde and other rebels, Chaturvedi said they did not have the courage to talk to Thackeray “face-to-face”.
She pointed out that the Shinde faction would attract the provisions of the anti-defection law under the Tenth Schedule. The Shinde camp would not escape the anti-defection law by merely claiming the support of more than two-thirds of Shiv Sena’s MLAs, she said. They will have to merge their faction with another political party. “Are they willing to do so?” she asked.
Asked whether Thackeray had conceded defeat by vacating the CM’s official bungalow ‘Varsha’ on Wednesday, Chaturvedi said, “The CM in his address said he was ready to step down as CM if any Shiv Sena MLA wanted him to do so. He is not one to cling to the chair.”
Reminded that Thackeray was forced to play the emotional card in his Facebook address to win back the support of rebel MLAs, Chaturvedi said, “Shiv Sena’s supporters poured on the streets to support the CM. The people are pouring their love on him and that is important. True and loyal Shiv Sainiks will always be with him. This is the real strength and this is true loyalty.”
Chaturvedi lashed out at the BJP and alleged that it had engineered the rebellion in Shiv Sena. “Our MLAs were tortured and illegally detained. Why were Goa police, Gujarat police and CISF used to transport the MLAs?” she asked.
The Shiv Sena MP alleged that the BJP was using all methods at its command to bring down the Thackeray government. "It is using the Enforcement Directorate (ED), money power and official machinery against its opponents," she said.
“Why did they have to take the MLAs to BJP-ruled Assam?” she asked.
