Amit Shah - Uddhav Thackeray Meet Tomorrow, Sanjay Raut Denies Any Hidden Agenda
Shiv Sena's defeat in the recently held Lok Sabha by-poll elections in Palghar, the relation between both Shiv Sena and BJP deteriorated further.
Mumbai, June 5: Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) President Amit Shah is set to meet Maharashtra coalition partner Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday evening at 6 pm at the latter's residence - Matoshree - in Mumbai. With Shiv Sena having developed conflict with its 25 years old alliance partner BJP, the Shah-Uddhav meet is being speculated to be a high-end discussion to improve the relationship as per political pundits. However, Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut has rubbished all speculation.
In an official statement over Shah-Uddhav meet, Raut said, "Amit Shah sought an appointment from Uddhav for a meeting. Therefore, his appointment has been fixed for tomorrow. As a tradition, at Matoshree (Uddhav's residence) everyone is welcomed. Hence, there is no hidden agenda from Shiv Sena's end behind this meeting."
Shah is meeting allies to seek samarthan (support) ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha elections. After meeting Uddhav Thackeray, Shah will reportedly travel to Chandigarh to meet Shiromani Akali Dal chief Parkash Singh Badal and his son Sukhbir Badal on Thursday.
After Shiv Sena's defeat in the recently held Lok Sabha by-poll elections in Palghar, the relation between both parties deteriorated further. Uddhav, after the by-poll results, slammed BJP for playing dirty politics. He also claimed the cause of defeat was due to EVMs rigging. In earlier news reports, he was quoted as saying, "When BJP came to power in 2014, we thought this government is here to stay for at least 25 years. However, just after four years, they are losing most by-elections, which has reduced them to minority now. After coming to power with a majority, they did not need allies anymore."
Shiv Sena entered into an alliance with BJP in the year 1989 and since then, both parties have contested together in assembly and general elections. This year, Shiv Sena has announced that it will fight the 2019 elections alone, breaking away from the BJP.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 05, 2018 01:59 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).