Maharashtra Assembly Elections 2024: Shiv Sena (UBT) reminds Shinde of promise to leave politics if any rebel MLA lost

Pune: The Shiv Sena (UBT) on Monday reminded Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde about his statement that he would leave politics if any of the MLAs who sided with him in the rebellion against Uddhav Thackeray faced defeat in the assembly polls.

In an article in mouthpiece Saamana, the Uddhav Thackeray-led party reminded Shinde that five of the 40 MLAs who were with him in Guwahati in 2022 had lost in the recent assembly polls, results of which were declared on November 23.

It said Sada Sarvankar had lost from Mahim, Yamini Jadhav from Byculla, Shahaji Bapu Patil from Sangola, Sanjay Raymulkar from Mehkar and Dnyanraj Chowgule from Umarga.

In June 2022, Shinde, then a minister in the Maha Vikas Aghadi, rebelled along with 40 MLAs against Thackeray. The rebels first went to Surat in Gujarat and then flew to Guwahati in Assam. The rebellion brought down the Thackeray government, after which Shinde became CM with the support of the BJP.

In the November 20 assembly polls, Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena won 57 of the 87 seats it contested, notching a strike rate of 70.37 per cent.

The Mahayuti swept the polls to the 288-member assembly, with Shiv Sena allies BJP bagging 132 seats and 41 going into the kitty of the NCP. The opposition Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) of Sharad Pawar managed to win just 16, 20 and 10 seats, respectively.

The BJP had the highest strike rate of 88.59 per cent after winning 132 of the 149 seats it contested.

Ajit Pawar-led NCP won 41 out of 59 seats with a strike rate of 69.49 per cent.