Amid strained relations and constant bickering between the two saffron allies, BJP President Amit Shah on Wednesday reached Matoshree, the residence of Shiv Sena chief Uddav Thackeray.
Shah reached Mumbai in the afternoon on Wednesday and began his ‘Sampark for Samarthan’ by meeting actor Madhuri Dixit and veteran singer Lata Mangeshkar.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Uddhav Thackeray’s son Aaditya Thackeray were also present at the meeting which lasted about two hours. While officially there was no word from both the parties about what transpired in the meeting, BJP sources claimed that the discussion was “positive” and would help reduce the tension between the two allies significantly. The two parties may have two or three more such meetings, the sources added.
State BJP chief Raosaheb Danve, who accompanied Shah earlier in the day when he called on actor Madhuri Dixit-Nene and industrialist Ratan Tata, did not attend the meeting with Thackeray.
The BJP chief is meeting Shiv Sena’s supremo at Matoshree in Mumbai under the party’s ‘Sampark for Samarthan’ campaign (contact for support) ahead of the final showdown in 2019 during the Lok Sabha elections.
The Shiv Sena, which sees the BJP’s efforts to consolidate its foothold in Mumbai and beyond as a threat to its political existence, has promised a divorce ahead of next year’s Lok Sabha elections.
This is the first meeting at Thackrey’s residence, Matoshree, after Shah’s visit last year when the BJP president had come around to patch-up cracks in the alliance over support for the presidential nominee.
The Sena and the BJP contested the May 28 bypolls to Palghar Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra separately and engaged in a bitter campaign against each other. The Shiv Sena has particularly been upset with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and has repeatedly attacked him.
Met Shri Uddhav Thackeray ji at Matoshree in Mumbai. pic.twitter.com/enLthz8Ykg
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) June 6, 2018
After facing defeat in the Palghar bypoll at the hands of the BJP, the Shiv Sena labelled its ally as its “biggest political enemy”. (PTI)
