Rejecting the idea of sharing the position of the leader of opposition in the state assembly for two and half years with the NCP(SP), the Shiv Sena, led by Uddhav Thackeray, staked its claim formally. The party has demanded the post for its group leader, Bhaskar Jadhav.
The party delegation, led by Uddhav Thackeray, met the assembly speaker, Rahul Narwekar, on Tuesday and submitted a letter. Interestingly, the Sena was not keen to submit a letter unless promised the position by the BJP – the largest party on the ruling side. Although what happened behind the curtain is privy to the senior leaders, it is said that the Sena would not have submitted a letter unless feelers were sent to it.
Before meeting Narwekar, with whom the party has not shared cordial relations ever since he ruled in favour of Ekanth Shinde-led Shiv Sena, Thackeray had a meeting with the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) leaders. He had discussions with the NCP state unit chief Jayant Patil and the party group leader Jitendra Awhad, where, interestingly, no leader from the Congress was present.
But the Congress leader Nana Patole made it clear on Monday that their party will not have any objection to the Sena’s stakes claim on the position of the LoP. The Congress is keen on getting a similar position in the state council, which is currently held by the Shiv Sena leader Ambadas Danve. However, the Sena has yet to react on it.
However, Thackeray has made it clear that the MVA has decided to work together.
Interestingly, the demand of the Shiv Sena(UBT) comes after the legislature secretariat, making it clear that there exist no specific rules over the appointment of the LoP. Rather, the special powers rest with the speaker, it has clarified. Now, all eyes will be on the BJP and the speaker in an atmosphere of somewhat uneasy relations with the Ekanth Shinde-led Shiv Sena, which is witnessing a scenario where the Thackeray-led Sena is cosying up with the big brother from the Mahayuti.
If the Shiv Sena gets the position of the leader of the opposition in the state assembly, it would be indicative of the new relations between the BJP and the Thackerays, say political sources.
