Shiv Sena dubs Raj Thackeray's MNS 'BJP's B-team' after MVA govt comes under fire

Escalating its attack on Raj Thackeray after he attacked the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government, Shiv Sena leaders described MNS as a "B-team" of BJP.

Speaking to the media on Monday, Shiv Sena Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi contended that the MNS president was following BJP's agenda. Echoing this stance, the party's Lok Sabha MP Arvind Sawant claimed that Raj Thackeray had no ideology and frequently changed his political stance. To buttress his point, he highlighted the manner in which Thackeray had criticised PM Modi during the 2019 General election campaign. 

Priyanka Chaturvedi remarked, "The MNS leader sometimes talks against Modi Ji, then in favour of him. Sometimes, he speaks against Yogi Adityanath, and then he speaks against him. The train engine is on the verge of extinction due to his confused signalling. First, AIMIM was the B team, now MNS is the C team (of BJP) in Maharashtra. The people are very intelligent and have understood whose agenda (Raj Thackeray) is following." 

Alleging that MNS is BJP's B-team, Arvind Sawant opined, "Raj Thackeray is not a big ideological leader. When he initially visited Gujarat, he praised Modi Sahab after highlighting the manner in which development is taking place in Gujarat. After 6-8 months, he said 'Switch on the video'. He strongly criticised Modi Sahab and hailed Sharad Pawar Sahab. Not just this, he stated that a person like Sharad Pawar Sahab should become the Prime Minister. After the ED notice, he again praised the Modi government." 

Speculation about MNS-BJP association

The speculation about a possible BJP-MNS tie-up dates back to the period immediately after the formation of the MVA government in November 2020. In a party meeting held in Pune, Raj Thackery was very critical of Shiv Sena distancing itself from Hindutva, according to sources.

The party's turn towards Hindutva gained momentum after it discarded its existing flag - which has three colours - saffron, green and blue. Meanwhile, both ex-Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis and fellow BJP MLA Ashish Shelar held "secret meetings" with the MNS chief.

However, there was no development vis-à-vis the alliance talks post the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. In January this year, Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil stressed that his party will not form an alliance with MNS for the upcoming Municipal Corporation elections in Nashik, Mumbai, Pune, and Thane. But Raj Thackeray's pro-BJP tilt came into focus during his Gudi Padva speech on April 2.

On this occasion, Thackeray mocked Shiv Sena for claiming the Chief Minister's post after the 2019 Assembly polls despite the fact that the BJP top brass had made it clear during the poll campaign that the CM will be from BJP.

Moreover, he took a dig at MVA for the arrest of Nawab Malik and Anil Deshmukh. Sparking buzz about a possible alliance with BJP, he also praised the governance model in Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh.