Over 14 Shiv Sena MPs attended a meeting addressed by rebel Sena leader and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde online, according to sources. Shinde was addressing 40 supporting MLAs in Mumbai in that meeting. when he announced plans for conducting the national executive of the breakaway faction which he claimed is the real Shiv Sena.
Shinde is likely to travel to Delhi to meet these MPs.
Deepak Kesarkar, spokesperson of the Shinde faction speaking to reporters in Mumbai refused to divulge details about the proposed national executive and the number of Shiv Sena MPs who have aligned with the Shinde faction.
“All MPs are with us. We as Shiv Sena are taking forward the Hindutva ideology of Balasaheb Thackeray,” said Kesarkar. He added that former Shiv Sena MP Shivajirao Adhalrao and former Minister Ramdas Kadam are with the Shinde camp.
“In a democracy the number is important,” said Kesarkar. When asked about the Supreme Court hearing about the disqualification of rebel MLAs, Kesarkar said that he won’t comment on the judicial matter.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on July 20 a batch of pleas pertaining to the recent political crisis in Maharashtra that led to the fall of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government led by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, along with the NCP and the Congress.