A day after the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena placed a full-page advertisement in several Maharashtra newspapers quoting a survey that showed the chief minister had an upper hand for the top post over BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis, the party seemed to be in damage control mode.
On Wednesday, a ‘corrected’ version of the advertisement appeared in newspapers with photos of Shiv Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray and late Shiv Sena leader from Thane Anand Dighe along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah on the top. The new ad also has symbols of both parties as compared to yesterday’s advertisement which only featured Shiv Sena’s ‘bow and arrow’ symbol. Apart from space for photos of nine Shiv Sena cabinet ministers, the ad has a photo of Shinde and Fadnavis together.
The latest advertisement has given fodder to the Opposition in Maharashtra. NCP MP and newly elected working president of the party Supriya Sule said: “It looks like the design of this advertisement has come from Delhi. Even we want to know who is the well-wisher giving these big advertisements for which one may have to spend crores of rupees?”
Shiv Sena UBT MP Sanjay Raut said: “Nothing is well in the Shinde-Fadnavis alliance. This new ad has appeared because of pressure from Fadnavis. If Fadnavis is not happy, the party should take it seriously and try to speak with him.”
However, rubbishing the allegations, cabinet minister and Shiv Sena leader Shambhuraj Desai said: “Yesterday’s advertisement was not given by Shiv Sena party. That ad created confusion in the alliance and hence, today’s ad was given to clear all this confusion.”
Nitesh Rane, MLA and BJP leader, echoed the sentiment. “We need to see who is Sanjay Raut in our ‘Maha-Yuti’ who is trying to escalate the tension in the alliance,” he charged.
Fadnavis had cancelled his Kolhapur tour schedule with Shinde on Tuesday, adding fuel to fire. Though his office cited his health behind the tour cancellation, political analysts say the advertisement portraying Shinde as the preferred chief minister did not go down well with the Fadnavis camp.
Wednesday’s ‘corrected’ advertisement talks about how the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance got 46.4 per cent votes in the survey compared to Tuesday’s ad which showed Shinde had received 26.1 per cent votes for CM post over Fadnavis who got 23.2 per cent.
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