NEW DELHI: Raj Thackeray met Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday, with the timing of the talks fueling curiosity as it comes after the Thackeray brothers (Raj and Uddhav) failed to win any of the 21 seats in the BEST Employees' Cooperative Credit Society poll.
While the details of the talks remain under wraps, the catch-up is hard to brush off for its political significance as Mumbai awaits the long-pending BMC polls .
The meeting comes after the first joint electoral contest by the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) in the BEST Employees’ Co-operative Credit Society elections ended in a humiliating defeat on Wednesday.
The Shashank Rao-led BEST Workers’ Union panel won 14 seats, while a BJP-backed panel led by Prasad Lad and Pravin Darekar took seven. The defeat is a setback for Uddhav and Raj ahead of BMC polls, with observers calling it a “wake-up call” that exposed weak ground-level mobilisation.
After the results, Fadnavis said the outcome showed rejection of “Thackeray brand,” while Lad claimed workers punished 25 years of exploitation. Sena (UBT) neta Suhas Samant alleged cash-for-votes, a charge rivals denied.
Last month, Uddhav Thackeray and cousin Raj Thackeray shared the stage at a mega rally in Mumbai organised by their parties to mark the withdrawal of government resolutions (GRs) related to the three-language policy.
Attacking the BJP-led Mahayuti during his address, Raj Thackeray had said: "How did they suddenly bring in the imposition of Hindi without any discussion? For what purpose, and for whom? This is an injustice to young children. Without any consultation, you’re trying to force it upon us. You may rule the assembly - but we rule the streets."
"Chief minister Fadnavis managed to do what Balasaheb Thackeray could not - bring myself and Uddhav together," Raj Thackeray had said in a dig at Devendra Fadnavis.
While the details of the talks remain under wraps, the catch-up is hard to brush off for its political significance as Mumbai awaits the long-pending BMC polls .
The meeting comes after the first joint electoral contest by the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) in the BEST Employees’ Co-operative Credit Society elections ended in a humiliating defeat on Wednesday.
The Shashank Rao-led BEST Workers’ Union panel won 14 seats, while a BJP-backed panel led by Prasad Lad and Pravin Darekar took seven. The defeat is a setback for Uddhav and Raj ahead of BMC polls, with observers calling it a “wake-up call” that exposed weak ground-level mobilisation.
After the results, Fadnavis said the outcome showed rejection of “Thackeray brand,” while Lad claimed workers punished 25 years of exploitation. Sena (UBT) neta Suhas Samant alleged cash-for-votes, a charge rivals denied.
Last month, Uddhav Thackeray and cousin Raj Thackeray shared the stage at a mega rally in Mumbai organised by their parties to mark the withdrawal of government resolutions (GRs) related to the three-language policy.
Attacking the BJP-led Mahayuti during his address, Raj Thackeray had said: "How did they suddenly bring in the imposition of Hindi without any discussion? For what purpose, and for whom? This is an injustice to young children. Without any consultation, you’re trying to force it upon us. You may rule the assembly - but we rule the streets."
"Chief minister Fadnavis managed to do what Balasaheb Thackeray could not - bring myself and Uddhav together," Raj Thackeray had said in a dig at Devendra Fadnavis.
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