Ready to help reconcile two Senas, but hearts need to meet first: Shirsat
News Mania Desk / Piyal Chatterjee / 2nd February 2025
Maharashtra Shiv Sena minister Sanjay Shirsat stated that he is willing to help broker peace between his party and the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), but emotional connections need to be established first. In an interview with a Marathi channel on Saturday, the Shiv Sena spokesperson stated that he and several of his party colleagues maintain friendly relations with the Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders even now.
Shirsat expressed that he feels hurt by the division in the Shiv Sena, established by Bal Thackeray, which is currently led by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
When asked if he would be willing to support any reconciliation efforts if given the chance, Shirsat replied, I will, but first, we need to align our hearts. He mentioned that leaders from both parties still greet each other warmly. However, he pointed out that the gap has widened to a point where, if not addressed now, it will be challenging to repair the relationship in the future, Shirsat stated.
When asked if Aaditya Thackeray, the Sena (UBT) leader and son of ex-Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray, could help with reconciliation, Shirsat stated that the young leader, being in his 30s, was not actually in a position to assist due to his age.
We can overlook the errors made by one another. Shirsat stated that if you believe unity can be achieved through insults, that is not feasible, referring to the attacks from Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders. The original Shiv Sena, under Uddhav Thackeray, fractured in June 2022 when Shinde instigated a rebellion, departed with his followers, and joined forces with the BJP to assume the role of chief minister of Maharashtra. Afterward, he obtained the party name along with its bow and arrow symbol.
Since the division, the two Sena factions have relentlessly attacked each other.
In the Maharashtra assembly elections held last year, the Sena headed by Shinde, a partner in the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance, won 57 of the state’s 288 seats.
By contrast, the Sena (UBT), which has aligned with the Congress and Sharad Pawar’s NCP (SP) under the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), bagged only 20.
