“The upcoming elections are not about power,” Uddhav Thackeray said

Ramtek (Maharashtra):

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday claimed that BJP leaders had been directed in a closed-door meeting to break the Opposition ranks and target himself and NCP (SP) leader Sharad Pawar.

Mr Thackeray said the people will decide his political future and not the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

He alleged Union Home Minister Amit Shah had directed BJP leaders in a “closed-door” meeting to “stop” him (Uddhav) and Sharad Pawar politically.

“During his recent visit to Nagpur, Amit Shah held a closed-door meeting of BJP leaders where he asked them to split the Opposition ranks and politically stop me and Sharad Pawar. Why speak behind closed doors? He should say this before people,” Mr Thackeray said after inaugurating a life-size statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Ramtek city in east Maharashtra.

Why does Amit Shah want to finish Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar politically…so that the BJP can loot Maharashtra, he alleged.

Mr Thackeray said the BJP snapped its three-decade-old alliance with (undivided) Shiv Sena in 2014 (before assembly elections). “However, Sena managed to win 63 seats,” he added.

Mr Thackeray wondered if RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat agreed with BJP’s “Hindutva” involving breaking other parties and poaching (opposition leaders).

“The upcoming elections are not about power but they are crucial to prevent Maharashtra from getting looted,” the former chief minister said and appealed to people to ensure a massive victory for Maha Vikas Aghadi and deliver all six assembly segments in Ramtek Lok Sabha constituency.

Congress and NCP (SP) leaders Sunil Kedar and Anil Deshmukh shared the dais with Mr Thackeray.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)