15 June,2015 03:49 PM IST | | Harit N Joshi
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, who has backed Dr Vijay Patil's Cricket First panel in the June 17 elections of the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA), in his meeting with voters yesterday at Matoshree revealed why his party withdrew their support to former India skipper Dilip Vengsarkar when he contested for the president's post against Late Vilasrao Deshmukh in 2011
Uddhav Thackeray
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, who has backed Dr Vijay Patil's Cricket First panel in the June 17 elections of the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA), in his meeting with voters yesterday at Matoshree revealed why his party withdrew their support to former India skipper Dilip Vengsarkar when he contested for the president's post against Late Vilasrao Deshmukh in 2011.
Uddhav Thackeray
Like Patil, Vengsarkar, who is contesting for the vice-president's post this time from the Bal Mahaddalkar group, too garnered Shiv Sena's support to help him beat Deshmukh. But the former India chairman of selector lost to the Congress bigwig by 45 votes.
'Vengsarkar told us to go slow'
Thackeray in his address to voters is believed to have said that Vengsarkar requested the Shiv Sena to go slow just a couple of days before the elections. "Shiv Sena either fully supports or withdraws. We withdrew support in the end because he wanted us to go slow," Thackeray told the gathering.
It is believed that Shiv Sena has control over 60-80 votes in this MCA elections and Thackeray urged his partymen to only vote for the Cricket First panel.
"This is my panel. I want each and everyone to support this panel wholeheartedly. They should get full majority. If they don't win, I will blame you all," Thackeray said. Cricket First panel is pitted against Pawar-Mahaddalkar group with Dr Vijay Patil and incumbent president Sharad Pawar fighting for the top post.
