Mumbai: New CM candidate from Shiv Sena appears in Thane

A banner put up in Thane that 'wishes' Sena leader Eknath Shinde becomes chief minister

As the high-voltage political drama in the state continues even two weeks after assembly poll results, a new leader is being suggested as the future chief minister.

While the Shiv Sena is adamant over its demands of sharing half the power and splitting the chief minister-ship, amid the negotiations, Thanekars are rooting for Eknath Shinde as the next CM.

Shinde was recently named Group Leader by Sena on the floor of the House.

The current deadlock is the result of not a single party managing to get the required majority - the BJP has 105 seats and its alliance partner, Sena has 56 seats. With both parties dependent on each other, there are speculations over how and when the government will be formed, and if the President's rule will eventually come into place.

The entire political scenario changed after Sena workers started demanding that Aaditya Thackeray be the next CM. But banners and hoardings saying, "Praying that Eknath Shinde saheb becomes the CM," have cropped up in Thane.

Sena leaders officially claim that they had nothing to do with the banners and hoardings and it was just local residents who were sharing their love, which cannot be helped. But this could become a problem for Shinde as the hoardings are likely to send signals to Matoshree that he is eyeing the chief minister-ship, said Sena sources.

However, clarifying their stand, Naresh Mhaske, Thane's district unit leader and leader of the House at Thane Municipal Corporation, said, "These banners were not put up in any official capacity, all decisions are to be taken by the Sena chief, and we shall follow him. Some people must be showing their love towards Thane's favourite leader and as such must have put up the hoardings. But neither him, nor the party has anything to do with them."

When asked if there will be any directions given to party workers to remove the hoardings, he said, "When we don't know who put them up, how can we tell our workers to take them off?"

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