Uddhav Thackeray’s ‘offer’ to Nitin Gadkari draws jeers from BJP

Maharashtra Deputy CM Fadnavis confirms Nitin Gadkari as BJP's top candidate for Lok Sabha elections in Nagpur.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray’s open offer to senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Nitin Gadkari to leave the BJP and contest as a candidate from the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) met with derision from the saffron party.

Mr. Uddhav Thackeray, speaking at a rally in Latur, had again picked on the BJP for reportedly ‘excluding’ Mr. Gadkari from its first list of 195 candidates while announcing the name of former Maharashtra Minister Kripashankar Singh, accused of graft charges, for the Jaunpur seat.

Exhorting Mr. Gadkari to resign from the BJP instead of “bowing before Delhi”, Mr. Thackeray said he would get the Union Minister elected as a MVA candidate in the coming General Election.

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Laughing off Mr. Thackeray’s remarks, Deputy CM and Maharashtra BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis disparaged the Sena (UBT) chief’s ‘offer’ to Mr. Gadkari as being akin to “a man in the street offering someone the post of the US President”.

“Nitin Gadkari is a tall leader of our party. He contests from Nagpur. When the first list of candidates [of BJP] was released, seat-sharing discussions among the Mahayuti partners [BJP, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP] were not complete... Gadkari ji’s name would come up first [in the candidates’ list] when the list for Maharashtra is declared,” Mr. Fadnavis said.

He further said, “Uddhav Thackeray’s own party is in shambles. The chief of such a party giving offer to a national-level leader like Gadkari ji is akin to a small-time person offering someone the post of US President. He should take care not to turn himself into a laughing stock.”