Amid the ongoing clamor of dissidence in the Shiv Sena (UBT), party president Uddhav Thackeray on Friday offered to resign while addressing supporters and party workers in Mumbai.
“I am not someone who runs away in the face of challenges, but if you do not have confidence in me, I am ready to step down,” Uddhav said while addressing party workers on the Shiv Sena’s 60th foundation day on Friday.
Uddhav alleged that the BJP was trying to eliminate his party and said the country was moving towards “one party, no elections”.
The remarks come at a time when six Sena UBT MPs are expected to break away from the party and support Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena. The six representatives also missed Friday’s event.
Speaking about the alleged rebellion, the Sena leader said that Shiv Sainiks are not “discouraged”, but “excited”. He also apologized to the voters for the “dissent” of the representatives, saying:
“I apologize to the voters who voted in 2024 for the Lok Sabha MPs who have now defected,” Uddhav said, adding, “These voters voted for us in response to my appeal, name Balasaheb. We won these nine seats without using Modi’s name.”
During the event, Uddhav Thackeray felicitated four Shiv Sena UBT MPs, including three Lok Sabha MPs, who remained with the party.
Six MPs – Sanjay Dina Patel, Nagesh Patel Ashtekar, Om Raje Nimbalkar, Bhausaheb Wakchor, Sanjay Deshmukh and Sanjay Jadhav – are expected to defect from the party and support its rival Sena, which is part of the NDA bloc.
Uddhav praises Congress and ‘no’ to merger
While speaking at the event, Uddhav said that while the united Shiv Sena has spent fighting Congress for decades, the party has never tried to eliminate the Sena. However, along with the BJP, he claimed that the saffron party is trying to eliminate the Sena.
“We have spent half our lives fighting the Congress, but they have never tried to eliminate the Shiv Sena like the BJP is trying to do. This is the difference between the two parties,” Uddhav said.
On the issue of merger with Congress, he said: “As long as it is about merger, the Shiv Sena has been formed as a Marathi manus. There is no question of its merger with any party.”
