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Even as his party continues to raise questions about the credibility of EVMs following its rout in last month's Assembly elections, Uddhav Thackeray met Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Nagpur on Tuesday for the first time after the polls and congratulated him.
Uddhav Thackeray's son and senior Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Aaditya Thackeray, who accompanied his father to the meeting, said the move was a step forward in working together for the interests of Maharashtra.
“Our party chief Uddhav Thackeray met Chief Minister Fadnavis and Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar today. What we have done is a step forward… that both sides should show political maturity and work together in the interest of Maharashtra the country. We may be in the opposition and they may be in the ruling coalition, but we are all elected representatives of the people and they (the ruling parties) can also listen to us, which may lead to some good things happening,” the Worli MLA said in Hindi.
Sources said the meeting - which took place in Mr Fadnavis' chambers at the Vidhan Bhavan in Nagpur, where the winter session of the Assembly is on - was a courtesy one and Mr Thackeray congratulated Mr Fadnavis on the ruling coalition's victory.
Mr Thackeray, who led the united Shiv Sena at the time, was an ally of the BJP until 2019, when he walked out of the alliance following a disagreement over whether he or Mr Fadnavis should become the chief minister. In a shock move, he joined hands with the NCP and the Congress to assume the top post in Maharashtra.
Mr Thackeray's government, however, fell in 2022 after a senior leader from his party, Eknath Shinde, rebelled and sided with the BJP, taking most of the Shiv Sena MLAs with him. Mr Shinde then became the chief minister with Mr Fadnavis as his deputy. The alliance got another partner the folllowing year, when Ajit Pawar rebelled and formed a breakaway faction of the NCP.
Mr Fadnavis and Mr Thackeray have been at loggerheads since the BJP and Shiv Sena parted ways and both have attacked each other several times, including over the version of ‘Hindutva' practised by both of them.
Rise And Fall
The coalition of Mr Thackeray's Shiv Sena with the Congress and Sharad Pawar's faction of the NCP pulled off a stupendous performance in the Lok Sabha polls, winning 30 of Maharashtra's 48 Lok Sabha seats, but was routed in last month's Assembly polls, winning just 46 of 288 constituencies while the BJP alone bagged 132.
After the defeat, Mr Thackeray's Shiv Sena, Mr Pawar's NCP and the Congress have all claimed that the ruling coalition's landslide victory was a result of EVMs being manipulated and also boycotted the swearing-in ceremony over this. The issue has also led to allegations and protests by the opposition in the Assembly.