Former Maharashtra minister Vijay Shivtare, 63, is noted for having friends from all political parties. However, recent proximity to him has resulted in countless red faces in the state.
On Sunday, a Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena leader claimed to have planted the initial seeds of discontent in Eknath Shinde’s head, leading to his defection from the Uddhav Thackeray group and ultimate ascent to power with the support of the BJP. Shivtare further stated that, while still a BJP ally ahead of the 2019 Assembly elections, Uddhav has already established contact with the NCP and Congress. According to Shivtare, the Sena genuinely worked against the BJP on multiple seats, ensuring its loss.
The former minister claimed to have approached Shinde soon after Uddhav entered into the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance with the NCP and Congress, and they formed the government. “I went to Shinde’s residence and we had a four-and-a-half-hour meeting. I conveyed to him that the Shiv Sena cannot have an alliance with Congress and NCP. It was not correct, that we have to withdraw and join hands with the BJP.”
Shivtare won from Purandar Assembly seat in the 2014 elections and was made the Minister of State, Water Resources and Water Conservation, by then Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in the BJP-Sena government. He was known to enjoy excellent relations with Fadnavis. In 2019, he lost the seat to the Congress’s Sanjay Jagtap, perhaps one reason for his rancor against the party. The Sena had then appointed him as the party spokesperson, in recognition of his articulation skills in the Assembly.