Raj Thackeray’s contradictory Gudi Padwa speech leaves cadre upset

Two key contradictions in the political stance and an unanswered question have thrown Raj Thackerayrsquos Maharashtra Navnirman Sena MNS into a tizzy The contradictions include seldom contesting elections officially and disputing their own stand of asking not to give votes to anyone that splits other parties while simultaneously seeking support from the BJP The unanswered question pertains to how votes will translate by switching the party from one extreme to the otherA 360degree turn in Thackerayrsquos political stance during his Gudi Padwa speech at Shivaji Park on Tuesday has left his party cadre upset and the voter base hurt and confused seeking answers They state that the last hope for Marathi ldquoasmitardquo pride and Maharashtra has finally fallenThackeray in his speech announced ldquounconditional supportrdquo to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the statersquos Mahayuti alliance for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections He stated that the MNS will not contest Lok Sabha polls but did not rule out contesting Assembly elections slated to be held later this year urging his party members to start working towards itRaj with DCM Devendra Fadnavis File picSameer MarkandeWithin hours of Thackerayrsquos speech MNS general secretary Kirtikumar Shinde tendered his resignation on Wednesday morning opposing Thackerayrsquos decision to support the BJP He stated that ldquoBhaMoShardquo BJPModi and Shah had ldquoruinedrdquo the countryWhenever MNS used to lose any seat in polls Thackeray used to give examples of the BJP in the 80s showcasing their resilience Even yesterday he contradicted himself in his speech by asking his party members and voters not to endorse the kind of politics prevalent in Maharashtra and then sought support for Narendra Modi and the BJP which has been leading splits in state partiesldquoIt was like giving a war cry to his army and then when they assemble telling them that we are not fighting and backing out His entire speech was like a criminal trying to defend himself in court It was unexpected and unnecessary for him to criticise the media that had made him a hero Regarding his political stance he was not even defending himself properly but just making an unconvincing attempt He has shattered the hopes of manyrdquo political analyst Prakash Akolkar saidPolitical commentator and Lokmatrsquos Senior Assistant Editor Sandeep Pradhan felt that Raj Thackerayrsquos support to the BJP was a strategic move to weaken Chief Minister Eknath Shinde ldquoOne thing is clear his party could not align with the alliance where Uddhavrsquos Sena has been He had to join the other one He has given a clear call to his party cadre that they should support the BJP and not Shinde Sena Given his background Thackerayrsquos allegiance has always been with the BJP and the only way to weaken Shindersquos influence eventually was to have a Thackeray onboard the existing alliance and this is exactly what he has donerdquo Pradhan saidldquoRaj Thackeray seems confused every five years always confusing his voter base and cadre Just when you think Raj Thackeray is doing right he takes a Uturn This move was expected after his visit to Delhi but then why exert so much effort and hold rallies about Marathi pride and businesses going away to Gujaratrdquo a commentator saidldquoIt seems your stand has been taken as a politician Nothing happened in Maharashtrarsquos interest today Why is there no mention of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Memorial He started politics in support of the Marathi people 18 years ago and ended up supporting Modi Quite a fallrdquo another commentator saidMNS leader resignsldquoFive years ago Rajsaheb Thackeray vehemently opposed BJPModiShah during the frenzy of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections It was a very important time for me politically During those days I attended all the public lsquoLav Re To Videorsquo meetings held by him and wrote detailed articles about the facts and thoughts he presented against BJPModiShah in the meetings I sincerely tried to make his stance known to more and more peoplerdquo party general secretary and leader Kirtikumar Shinde saidldquoToday at a very crucial moment in the history and democracy of the country Rajsaheb has changed his political role How much of it is wrong how much of it is right political analysts will tell Well nowadays leaders can take any political stand But what about all those like us who believed in him It is our defeat What about thatrdquo Shine addedldquoIn the last 10 years especially in the last 5 years lsquoBhaMoSharsquo has ruined the country There has been no transparency only threats of ED CBI and Income Tax investigations Rajsaheb Thackeray taking the side of lsquoBhaMoSharsquo may be a political necessity for the partyrsquos existence but it is unlikely that there will be any benefit for Maharashtrarsquos Marathi people His stance may be right in power politics for the survival of MNS and himself but the side he has taken is correctrdquo Shinde saidldquoWhy has MNS become Maharashtra Namonirman Sena Why is Raj Thackeray supporting and welcoming Modi Which of his files have been opened and why has he surrendered like this He should answer the peoplerdquo Shiv Sena UBT leader Sanjay Raut saidBJP has scored a selfgoalVanchit Bahujan Aaghadi president Prakash Ambedkar said BJP had scored a selfgoal by seeking Raj Thackerayrsquos support as people from Uttar Pradesh Bihar and south India would not approve ldquoThey MNS and undivided Shiv Sena staged protests against south Indians and north Indians They were attacked and beaten How do you expect them to forget it These people will not vote for the BJPrdquo he saidAmbedkar said he was waiting for the equations in Mumbai to change in the wake of MNS support ldquoIt was because of it that I did not announce candidates for Mumbairsquos constituencies I will declare them by Thursdayrdquo he said2019Year Raj opposed Modi during general election