Entire Nashik Sena unit quits over candidature of BJP MLA

NASHIK: The entire Nashik city unit of the Shiv Sena, including all 36 party corporators in the Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) and over 350 office-bearers, resigned on Tuesday in protest against the candidature of sitting BJP MLA Seema Hiray in the Nashik West seat.
The Sena corporators and office-bearers openly declared that they would rally behind Vilas Shinde, the Sena leader who is contesting as an independent from the seat.
“All 36 Sena corporators have decided to resign from the NMC. We have sent a jointly signed letter to party chief Uddhav Thackeray intimating him about our decision,” said Ajay Boraste, senior Sena functionary and leader of the opposition in the NMC.
Boraste was addressing the media on Tuesday along with the Sena corporators and other top party leaders in the city. Shinde was also present.
Boraste claimed that even Sena office-bearers were in the process of handing over their resignation letters to the party’s chief coordinator, Bhausaheb Chowdhari.
“We are resigning to prevent any disciplinary action against us by the high command as we will not work for the BJP candidate in Nashik West. We have decided to violate the alliance dharma between the Sena and BJP in the constituency,” Boraste said.
The Nashik West seat should have gone to the Sena as it was one of the party’s bastions, Boraste said. “As many as 22 of our corporators are from Nashik West. BJP should have understood the ground reality and left the seat for us. We are apprehensive about the victory of the BJP from this seat,” he said.
Shinde said Hiray had been incapable of developing the constituency over the last five years. “The Sena needs to contest the polls from this seat to keep its base strong. If we do not fight from here, our party’s presence will be hugely diminished,” he argued.
There is apprehension among a section of the BJP leaders that the belligerence of the Sena would not only pose problems for Hiray but could also have a fallout in two other constituencies, Nashik East and Nashik Central, where BJP candidates are in the fray.
Recently, BJP leaders were upset after Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut met Balasaheb Sanap, who is contesting as an NCP candidate from Nashik East after being denied a ticket by the BJP though he is the sitting MLA. BJP leaders had said the Sena was sending wrong signals by meeting Sanap.
City BJP chief Girish Palve questioned why the Sena corporators had tendered their resignations to their party chief chief and not to the municipal commissioner. “A Sena candidate was in the fray in Nashik West in 2014 but the BJP still won the seat. We are confident of Hiray’s victory again,” he said.