After Congress' Mhetre, more opposition leaders cross over to Shiv Sena
MUMBAI: Days after former minister and senior Congress leader from Solapur Siddharam Mhetre joined the Shiv Sena led by deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde, another once-Congress leader from Ahilyanagar joined Shinde's party on Saturday. Former MLA Bhanudas Murkute was inducted into the Sena on Saturday along with other leaders from various other opposition parties.
Murkute, 84, who has been in various parties, including the Congress in the 1980s and '90s, Janata Dal, undivided NCP and Bharat Rashtra Samithi, joined the Sena with his family members and followers. The three-term MLA from Shrirampur has been in politics for over four decades though, according to the observers from Ahilyanagar, his political strength has waned over the last few years. Murkute was arrested in October last year on allegations of sexual assault.
Former deputy chairman of the Shrirampur municipal council and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Chhallare was another key leader from Ahilyanagar to join the Shinde-led Sena.
Shinde said that Murkute's joining his party would help it in winning big in the forthcoming local body polls. 'Bhanudas Murkute has joined the Sena with his robust team of supporters from Shrirampur,' he said. 'He has come to us with a belief in the Mahayuti government's development of Maharashtra. The induction has strengthened our party in Ahilyanagar and this will reflect in the local body polls, which are considered to be the elections of party workers.'
Murkute said that he and his supporters would work in the interest of the party, follow the ideology of Bal Thackeray and ensure success in the local body polls. The former MLA leads the Ashok Cooperative Sugar Factory and was the director of the district cooperative bank. He enjoys clout in the cooperative sector in the district and the Sena expects to benefit from this clout in the local body polls.
Senior Congress leader Siddharam Mhetre joined the Shiv Sena in Solapur on Thursday. Mhetre was a minister of state during the tenure of once of the Congress-NCP governments, and has a following in the Lingayat community which is dominant in Akkalkot constituency in Solapur. Mhetre said that he was joining the Sena in the expectation of getting funds for the irrigation projects in his constituency.
In March this year, a former Congress leader from Kasba in Pune joined the Shiv Sena months after being defeated in the Lok Sabha elections as a Congress candidate.
Shinde said that the induction of all these leaders had helped the Shiv Sena strengthen its base in their respective districts prior to the local body polls. The latter are expected to be held in October or November this year.
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