Shiv Sena (UBT) President and Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) ally Uddhav Thackeray has arrived in Delhi on Tuesday and will meet his alliance partners, aiming to persuade them to declare him as the chief ministerial candidate for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections in October.
As per a news report, Thackeray is on a three-day visit to the national capital and will meet his alliance partners, Congress and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction). His is slated to hold extensive meetings with Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar.
As The New Indian Express (TNIE) reported today, Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut has confirmed that Thackeray will engage with all top MVA leaders to strategize for the forthcoming assembly polls. Reflecting on the MVA's strong performance in the recent Lok Sabha elections, where they secured 31 out of 48 seats in Maharashtra, Raut emphasized the importance of replicating this success in the state assembly elections to reclaim power.
Sources within Sena (UBT) say that Thackeray is keen to be declared the chief ministerial candidate soon. A Sena (UBT) leader, speaking anonymously, highlighted Thackeray's significant role in the campaign and noted that although Shiv Sena (UBT) won fewer seats than Congress and NCP (SP) in the Lok Sabha, Thackeray was the campaign's face.The party believes it were his firebrand speeches which resonated with the public, and many in Maharashtra are eager to see him as chief minister again after his government was toppled by the BJP.
The leader further argued that declaring Thackeray as the chief ministerial candidate would energize both the party cadre and voters, presenting a clear choice between Thackeray and the incumbent chief minister, Eknath Shinde, or Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
Amidst these developments, Thackeray met with Ramesh Chennithala, the AICC in-charge of Maharashtra, on Tuesday and plans to meet other party leaders on Wednesday. Chennithala confirmed that while Thackeray's meetings with Congress's top leaders are scheduled, discussions about the chief ministerial candidate are not on the official agenda. However, both official and unofficial discussions among MVA partners are ongoing, TNIE reported.