‘Some rebels keen to return, but forced to stay’

Shiv Sena MLA Kailas Patil, who had escaped from a car carrying rebel legislators to Surat, on Thursday claimed some of those taken to the camp led by Maharashtra minister Eknath Shinde might be wanting to return, but were forced to stay back.

Addressing a press conference in Mumbai, Patil recalled how he walked for some kilometres near the Maharashtra-Gujarat border, then got lift on a twowheeler and a truck before reaching the Maharashtra chief minister’s official residence ‘Varsha’ here in the wee hours of Tuesday.

Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde is currently camping with some rebel MLAs in Assam’s Guwahati city, plunging the party-led Maharashtra government into a crisis. Patil said after he cast his vote in Mumbai on June 20 for the Maharashtra Legislative Council polls, he was called to Shinde’s bungalow in neighbouring Thane.

The MLA from Osamanabad said he along with some others were taken to Thane mayor’s bungalow, where their cars were changed before proceeding further. “A person from his (Shinde’s) staff was with me and we crossed Vasai- Virar (in adjoining Palghar district). I don’t know much about the area, but as we passed by the road and reached the (Maharashtra- Gujarat) check post, I realised that I was being taken in a different direction,” he said.

“When the cars stopped, the staff member said there was checking going on at the post and told me to take a little walk. I opened the car door and saw there was huge traffic jam,” Patil said.

After getting out of the car, the MLA crossed the lane and got on to the road going towards Mumbai, he said, recalling that he also got drenched in the rain at that time. “I thought those people would come searching for me. I kept walking between trucks for about one km. I requested a motorbike driver for a lift, but he refused. Later, another person helped me and left me at a hotel, three-four km away from the check post. There, I tried to seek help from some truck drivers and private vehicles going towards Mumbai,” he said.

Patil said he then called the residence of Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and also a Sena MP and conveyed to them that he was retur ning. His mobile phone battery was low and hence, he could not share with them his location, he said.

“Later, a truck driver from Uttar Pradesh heading towards Mumbai accepted my request and gave me a ride till the Dahisar toll plaza (naka) (an entry point to Mumbai). There, a person came to pick me up,” he said. Patil noted that MLA Nitin Deshmukh also returned from Surat where he was taken along with some rebel MLAs. —PTI

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Rebel Sena MLA writes to Maha CM , says Shinde went against leadership to secure ‘rights’ of party legislators

Mumbai: Rebel Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Shirsat has written a letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, claiming that state minister Eknath Shinde took the step of going against the party leadership as Sena MLAs, who faced “humilitation” for the last two-and-a-half years, persuaded him to do so.

While the Shiv Sena legislators had no access to the chief minister, the Congress and NCP, which are the “real opponents” of the Sena, were getting all the attention, he claimed in the letter, dated June 22. The Sena shares power with the NCP and Congress in Maharashtra. Shirsat, the MLA from Aurangabad (West) Assembly constituency, in the letter claimed that despite the Shiv Sena being in power and having its own chief minister, the coterie around Thackeray never allowed them access to ‘Varsha’, the CM’s official residence.

There was no question of going to ‘Mantralaya’, the state secretariat, because the chief minister never came there, he said. The letter was posted by Sahinde on his Twitter handle, claiming these were the sentiments of the Sena MLAs.

Shinde is currently camping with some rebel MLAs in Assam’s Guwahati city, plunging the Sena-led Maharashtra government into a crisis. In the letter, Shirsat said E k n a t h Shinde opened doors for the party MLAs to listen to their grievances, issues about development work in their constituencies and related fund, and problems with allies Congress and NCP. “Only Shinde heard us out and took steps to resolve all the problems.

The party MLAs persuaded Shinde to take this step (of revolt) for the rights of all the legislators,” Shirsat said in the letter. While the Shiv Sena legislators had no access to the chief minister, the Congress and NCP, which are the “real opponents” of the Shiv Sena, were getting all the attention, he claimed. —PTI