'Leave if You Want, Will Create New Shiv Sena': Uddhav Thackeray

The chief minister also accused the BJP of "trying to finish off" the Shiv Sena.

Amid a rebellion within his party, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, in an address delivered late on the night of Friday, 24 June, said that he "will create a new Shiv Sena" if MLAs leave. He also accused the BJP of "trying to finish off" the Sena.

In a virtual address to party corporators, Thackeray said that the Shiv Sena has been "betrayed by its own people," and dared rebel leader Eknath Shinde and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to try and take away the Shiv Sena cadre and those who vote for the party.

"I had told Eknath Shinde to look into complaints regarding alliance partners. He told me that legislators were pressurising him that the Sena should join hands with the BJP. I told him to bring these MLAs to me, let's discuss this. BJP treated us badly, didn't honour promises. Many of the rebels have cases filed against them. So if they go with BJP, they will become clean, if they stayed with us, they will go to jail. Is this a sign of friendship?"

Uddhav Thackeray, Maharashtra CM