Nagpur: Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal on Thursday accused Shiv Sena (UBT) of breaching alliance norms in Chandrapur, saying the party’s conduct stood in sharp contrast to Congress’ decision in Parbhani, where it backed Sena (UBT) to keep BJP out of power.Sapkal responded to the mayoral contest in Chandrapur, where BJP’s candidate won despite lacking a majority, a result he said was made possible with support from Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena. Addressing reporters in Buldhana, he said, “In Parbhani, Sena (UBT) secured the mayor’s post while Congress secured the deputy mayor’s post. To keep BJP out of power, all 12 Congress corporators voted for Shiv Sena (UBT).”
Drawing a comparison, Sapkal said Sena (UBT), despite having 8 corporators in Chandrapur, supported BJP. “Sena’s (UBT) stand in Chandrapur was politically wrong. Supporting such a move at the party level and attempting to malign the Congress amounts to a thief crying foul,” he said.He added Congress leaders discussed the matter with Sena (UBT) Sanjay Raut and remained in touch with the Thackeray-led party. “The statements made by Raut and members of his party were inappropriate and not in keeping with alliance norms,” Sapkal said.Citing the response of Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) led by Prakash Ambedkar, he noted that after 2 of its corporators remained absent during voting, “the party expelled them and also took action against its city president.” In contrast, he said Sena (UBT) took no action and instead defended its stand. “This is something Congress will not tolerate,” he added.Though there was a proposal for a Congress mayor in Parbhani, Sapkal said the party stepped aside. “We spurned power to uphold alliance dharma and stood by Sena (UBT). The developments in Chandrapur and Parbhani made it clear that Sena (UBT) seeks Congress votes within the alliance, but does not reciprocate,” he said.
