Mumbai: Maharashtra MLA Ravi Rana – an independent lawmaker whose wife, Navneet Rana, is the outgoing Amravati MP and among the BJP’s newest recruits, began his week with quite the prediction.
Mr Rana’s claim – ex-Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, a staunch BJP ally till post-2019 power-sharing squabbles drove a wedge between his Shiv Sena (then undivided) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party – will return to the fold by June 20.
“I can confidently say… 15 days after Modiji becomes Prime Minister again, Uddhav Thackeray will be seen in the Modi government and with Modiji. The coming era is of Modiji and Uddhav Thackeray knows this. It is Narendra Modiji who is taking the ideas of Balasaheb Thackeray forward.”
“Leaders of the opposition MVA (the Maha Vikas Aghadi formed by Mr Thackeray’s Sena, Sharad Pawar’s NCP, and the Congress) should keep blood pressure medicines and doctors with them… as many of them will fall sick on June 4,” the MLA from Badnera in Ms Rana’s constituency, crowed.
The MVA was formed after the BJP-Sena split of 2019; it kept the saffron party from power and ruled the state till a rebel Sena unit, led by Eknath Shinde, now the Chief Minister, brought the house down.
The claim has been laughed off by Sanjay Raut, Mr Thackeray’s right-hand man. “Uddhav Thackeray has been leading the Shiv Sena for 25 years. (After the election) Uddhav Thackeray will decide.”
“A person like Ravi Rana has no right to speak on Uddhav Thackeray.”
The relationship between Mr Thackeray and Mr Modi – whose parties were once fast allies – has deteriorated sharply since the 2019 election fallout, with the Maharashtra leader this month even ‘apologising’ to voters for supporting and seeking votes for the Prime Minister in the past.