Shiv Sena, Congress, NCP turn to resort politics'

Mumbai: Amid political uncertainty in Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena, Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) are taking no chances and were all set on Saturday evening to move their MLAs to the safety of resorts in a bid to stop alleged poaching attempts by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday afternoon met his party legislators, who are camping in a hotel in Mumbai, and told them to be patient. On the other hand, the Congress has decided to shift all its MLAs to Jaipur, Rajasthan. The NCP is also likely to move 49 of its 54 MLAs to a resort.

After holding a joint press conference with NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Mr Thackeray immediately reached Hotel Lalit near the airport in suburban Andheri where his MLAs are stationed.

“Everyone is shocked by what happened today,” he told his partymen. Mr Thackeray expressed confidence that not a single Sena MLA would quit the party. “Let them try to break our party,” he said in an apparent warning to the BJP, which has said that some Sena MLAs are in touch with it.

However, going by the dramatic developments in the state, there is speculation that the Sena may shift its MLAs to another state to prevent poaching.

Senior BJP leader Girish Mahajan claimed that Sena leaders are frustrated with Sanjay Raut. “His statements can only be called verbal diarrhoea. Many Shiv Sena legislators may also think of going with us,” he said.

Sources from the BJP claimed that some Congress legislators are also in touch with it. Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot, meanwhile, indicated that Maharashtra Congress MLAs might once again be put up at Jaipur. Last week, the party had moved them to Jaipur, out of the BJP’s reach.

Most NCP MLAs, barring Ajit Pawar and four others, attended the meeting called by Sharad Pawar in Mumbai on Saturday evening. “All MLAs are likely to be taken outside the state and will be brought back before the trust vote,” a source said.