Uddhav Thackeray's biggest blunder; Throwback to when Sharad Pawar advised him not to quit

Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray's decision to resign as Maharashtra Chief Minister has now come back to haunt him as the Supreme Court's order ruled in the favour of the Eknath Shinde's faction in relation to the Shiv Sena battle. In response to Thackeray's petition, the constitutional bench of the top court stated the restoration of Uddhav's government as he resigned voluntarily, without facing a floor test.

In an exclusive conversation with Republic Media Network over SC's verdict, state minister from Shinde's faction Deepak Kesarkar reminisced how Sharad Pawar in his Marathi autobiography Lok Maze Sangati mentioned that he advised the former Maharashtra CM to not resigned from his post. Kesarkar added that Uddhav keeps making blunders, doesn't listen to anyone and makes wrong decisions. 

When Sharad Pawar Asked Uddhav Thackeray to not resign as Maharashtra CM

Earlier this month, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar released the revised version of his autobiography Lok Maze Sangati where he shed light on the time when he tried to convince Uddhav to not tender his resignation without putting up a fight but failed. 

He referred to the time of undivided Shiv Sena when Ekanth Shinde along with over 40 MLAs launched a rebellion which later led to the collapse of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government. Pawar stated he and other members of the cabinet also sensed the lack of political deftness in Thackeray, something which a chief minister needs.

Pawar also mentioned in his book that the MVA regime comprising the NCP, Congress and then undivided Sena – was not just a power game but it was a powerful rebuttal to the BJP’s “tendency and intention to finish off other political parties by hook or by crook”. And it was obvious that there would be attempts to destabilise the MVA government but “we never anticipated that there would be a storm within the Shiv Sena due to Uddhav Thackeray becoming chief minister. “The Sena leadership fell short in quelling this outburst of discontent,” Pawar wrote.

The MVA’s stint in power came to an end after Uddhav resigned without putting up a fight, said Pawar.

Highlighting Uddhav Thackeray’s health becoming a restriction  and overall inexperience., the NCP leader said, "A  chief minister needs political acumen and must remain well-informed about political goings-on, and “we all felt that these things were lacking.”  

While the middle class liked Thackeray’s interaction with the people through Facebook Live during the Covid-19 pandemic, it was difficult to understand why he chose to visit Mantralaya only twice during this period. He distanced himself from many MLAs and was restricted to a few officials.