"Let People Decide": Uddhav Thackeray Dares Eknath Shinde And BJP To Mid-Term Polls
NDTV
"This is BJP's ploy to end the Shiv Sena," Uddhav Thackeray told district unit heads, hours after Eknath Shinde-led government proved majority
Uddhav Thackeray gathered the Shiv Sena — at least the part that he still commands — at its office on Monday evening and dared the new government led by party rebel Eknath Shinde to mid-term elections. This came hours after the Team Shinde-BJP coalition proved its majority comfortably as some more Shiv Sena MLAs crossed over to the new government.
NCP boss Sharad Pawar had yesterday told his party to be ready for mid-terms polls, predicting that the new government won't last until 2024, when the next assembly elections are due.
Mr Thackeray — who resigned as Chief Minister last Wednesday as the mutiny pushed the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress out of power — did not speak to the media after today's meeting with district unit heads. A statement by the party later said that Mr Thackeray told them to stay together if they wanted to put up a fight.
"This is BJP's ploy to end the Shiv Sena; I dare them to hold mid-term polls in the state. Instead of playing all these games, we will go to the court of people," the statement said quoting Mr Thackeray, "If we are wrong, people of the state will send us home; and if you (BJP and Shinde group) are wrong, people will send you home."
