Uddhav Thackeray says Shiv Sena wasted 25 years in alliance with BJP

By Team Newsable | First Published Jan 24, 2022, 12:33 PM IST

Thackeray told Shiv Sena members virtually on the 96th birth anniversary of the party's founder and his father, Bal Thackeray, that the Sena has partnered with the BJP to advance the Hindutva cause via power.

Uddhav Thackeray, the chief minister of Maharashtra and the president of the Shiv Sena, said that his party would expand its presence beyond the state and seek a national role, even as he accused the BJP of using Hindutva for political gain. He further said that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led by the BJP, has shrunk since traditional components such as the Akali Dal and Shiv Sena have already left the coalition. Thackeray told Shiv Sena members virtually on the 96th birth anniversary of the party's founder and his father, Bal Thackeray, that the Sena has partnered with the BJP to advance the Hindutva cause via power.

"Shiv Sena had linked with BJP because it sought power for Hindutva, but Sena never utilised Hindutva for power's sake," he remarked. The Sena has defected from the BJP, not Hindutva. He believes that the BJP's opportunistic Hindutva is motivated only by a desire for power. Thackeray further said that Sena's 25-year alliance with the BJP was a waste of time.

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Following the 2019 Maharashtra elections, the Sena split from the BJP and joined forces with the NCP and Congress to establish the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) administration. "We fully backed the BJP for them to achieve their national goals. The agreement was that they would go national while leading in Maharashtra. But we were betrayed, and there were attempts to ruin us in our own house. As a result, we had to respond," Thackeray stated this to defend his choice to join Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party following the 2019 elections.
He said that the BJP utilises and dismisses its allies based on political expediency.

In response to the BJP's claims that Sena had abandoned Hindutva for power, he stated that his party had left the BJP, not the Hindutva doctrine. "The BJP does not imply Hindutva. I stand by my statement that the Shiv Sena has squandered 25 years in an alliance with the BJP," he stated.

Referring to the recent Nagar Panchayat elections, in which Sena finished fourth, the Maharashtra Chief Minister claimed Sena leaders, including himself, did not take local body contests seriously and campaigned accordingly. Despite this setback, he believes the Sena should strengthen its national influence and capture power in Delhi. Thackeray directed Sena workers and leaders to establish cooperative and banking organisations in rural regions. He believes the Sena should go beyond Maharashtra and strive to "conquer" Delhi. He urged Shiv sainiks to work zealously to establish the party's grassroots organisation now that the party is in power in Maharashtra. Thackeray, who is recovering from back surgery, lashed out at Maharashtra BJP leaders for assaulting him over his health.

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