Days after Thackeray Sena’s alliance with VBA, cracks emerge within MVA over Prakash Ambedkar’s jibe at Sharad Pawar

Thackeray camp’s Sanjay Raut says Sena (UBT) does not support Mr. Ambedkar’s remarks; VBA chief says BJP is the real enemy

A few days after the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) solemnised their alliance with Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), Mr. Ambedkar’s remark that Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar was ‘siding with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’, has triggered a potential schism within the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) troika of the NCP, Mr. Thackeray’s Shiv Sena faction and the Congress.

Mr. Ambedkar’s remarks, while embarrassing the Thackeray-led Sena, sparked angry ripostes from the NCP.

On Friday, Thackeray camp loyalist, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut stressed that his party did not agree with the VBA chief’s remarks against Mr. Pawar.

Also read: Prakash Ambedkar says Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi never opposed allying with Congress, NCP 

“After preliminary talks, we [Sena (UBT) and the VBA] may have forged an alliance. But it is not acceptable that Mr. Ambedkar makes such remarks against MVA leaders. Saying that Mr. Pawar belongs to the BJP is unbecoming as he [Mr. Pawar] has tried to stop the BJP every time by taking the lead in forming a coalition of like-minded parties against it,” Mr. Raut said, adding that Mr. Ambedkar “ought to use his words carefully” if he wished a strong coalition against the BJP to endure.

Mr. Ambedkar alleged that Sharad Pawar was in league with the BJP.

“Three-four days after the swearing-in of Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar as Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister in 2019, in an interview published in a newspaper, Ajit Pawar was quoted saying that he did not understand why people were blaming him. He said this was decided by our party. I was the first to go… This was decided before the 2019 Lok Sabha election,” Mr. Ambedkar said.