Shiv Sena Snaps Alliance With BJP, Will Fight Mumbai Civic Polls Alone

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday said that his party will not fight any local body election, including the upcoming civic poll in Mumbai, in alliance with the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP). “We shall not go around with a begging bowl. We have wasted 25 years in this alliance; but no more. Shiv Sena will contest all the civic body elections independently and will not have an alliance with them (BJP) henceforth,” Thackeray said at a party rally in Goregaon. The party will, for now, continue to share power with BJP in the state and at the centre.

Attacking Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for banning all kinds of religious activities and poojas in all government offices, he said that the decision should be withdrawn with immediate effect. “They [BJP] are hellbent on removing photos. First Mahatma Gandhi was removed from a poster and instead Narendra Modi was installed. But Modi knows he is going to lose Uttar Pradesh elections. And as he knows, the BJP has remembered Ram, through Ram Mandir,” Thackeray said.

Talking about BJP’s call for transparency in the upcoming elections, he said that he has no problem, adding that the same should be implemented in the functioning of the state and the central governments. Giving Tamil Nadu’s example, Thackeray asked 'sainiks’ to be united. “See how Tamil Nadu is together. Whether it's wrong or right. But they are together for Jallikattu”, he said.

Fadnavis reacted to Thackeray’s comments on Twitter, defending his call for transparency. “Transformation is inevitable”, he said.