The state of Maharashtra, exactly after a year, has plunged into another political crisis, this time with Nationalist Congress Party witnessing a vertical split after party chief Sharad Pawar's nephew Ajit's mutiny. Ajit Pawar with Chhagan Bhujbal, Hasan Mushrif and others joined the Shinde-Fadnavis government on July 2, Sunday, in an unanticipated move.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray made a sharp remark and said that Sharad Pawar has successfully carried out Act 1 to "get rid of Uddhav". He also expressed anguish over state of Maharashtra politics.
Posters put up in Mumbai
Hours after his statement, MNS workers put up posters across Mumbai urging their party president Raj Thackeray and his rival & cousin Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray to extend an olive branch amid the political turmoil.
In a video shared by news agency ANI, a poster urging Thackeray cousins to join hands was spotted outside a petrol pump in Dadar. Accrding to reports, the poster was put up at Ram Ganesh Gadkari Chowk.
The poster which was in Marahi read, "Politics of Maharashtra has become muddy, Rajsaheb-Uddhavsaheb come together now. All of Maharashtra is awaiting for this moment--an earnest request from a Maharashtrian soldier."
Reportedly, the poster was put up by an MNS leader called Laxman Patil.
Friction between Raj & Uddhav
Raj and Uddhav have been at loggerheads since the fight between them aggravated in 2005 after the former deserted (then undivided) Shiv Sena following a cold war and formed MNS. Raj was seen as Bal Thackeray's heir at the time.
He blamed his cousin and his camp; he said that he was being used merely for campaigning.
Meanwhile, Uddhav assumed the post as Sena chief in 2013 following Bal Thackeray's demise and remained in the post until Eknath Shinde's rebellion.
