NEW DELHI: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Friday claimed that Maharashtra is set to appoint its third deputy chief minister, suggesting the candidate will come from Shiv Sena’s Shinde faction.
“Maharashtra will get a third deputy CM soon. It will be someone from among them (Shiv Sena-Shinde),” Raut told reporters.
Raut also took aim at Shinde and his faction, accusing them of abandoning the party out of fear of central agencies. “These people ran away in fear of the ED and CBI,” he said. Despite the split, Raut said that Shiv Sena (UBT) remains resilient. “Power comes and goes, but we are standing firmly on our feet here,” he added.
BJP leader Kirit Somaiya reacted to UBT MP’s claim, saying, “Sanjay Raut forgets all the predictions that he made in the last two and a half years the very next day. If he wants to do stunts to remain in the media, let him do it.”
The remarks from Raut came amid rising tensions between the two factions. Maharashtra deputy chief minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde, during a ‘Shivoutsav’ event at Bandra Kurla Complex marking the 99th birth anniversary of Balasaheb Thackeray, targeted Uddhav Thackeray for allegedly betraying his father’s ideology.
“You left Balasaheb Thackeray’s ideology in 2019 only for the CM chair. You trampled on his principles, so you have no moral right to talk about the Balasaheb Thackeray memorial,” Shinde said.
Reflecting on his own leadership, Shinde pointed out his tenure as a period of dedicated service to Maharashtra. “I received the opportunity to serve the people of Maharashtra wholeheartedly for two and a half years. The recognition I received as a beloved brother of 2.4 crore sisters in the state is greater than all positions,” he said.
Shinde further added the importance of self-respect, a value he attributed to Balasaheb Thackeray’s teachings. “Self-respect is more important to us than any chair,” Shinde said, reiterating his criticism of Uddhav Thackeray. “Those who trampled on Balasaheb’s thoughts have no moral right to talk about the memorial,” he said.
