The Tuesday Interview | ‘We are Bala Saheb’s original Shiv Sena’, says Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde

In an interview with DH’s Sumit Pande, Shinde says the NDA will decide on its chief minister after the elections and emphasises that development remains the main poll plank.

Defying the powerful Thackeray family, Eknath Shinde broke away from the Shiv Sena in June 2022 to become Maharashtra’s chief minister, forming an alliance with the BJP. Now, leading his party into the assembly polls, Shinde claims the legacy of Sena founder Bal Thackeray. In an interview with DH’s Sumit Pande, he says the NDA will decide on its chief minister after the elections and emphasises that development remains the main poll plank. Excerpts:

What are the issues on which the Shiv Sena-BJP-NCP Mahayuti is contesting this election?

Development is our main poll plank. In the last two years, our government revived projects such as Mumbai Metro and Atal Setu that were stalled during the MVA rule. My predecessors worked with an anti-development vision. We had to fast-track all the development schemes, or Maharashtra would have lagged by almost a decade. Over 12 lakh people are now using the metro. We started the ‘ladki-bahin’ scheme to empower women. Our focus is clear: develop Maharashtra and create infrastructure including road, rail, water, and air connectivity. For instance, the Nagpur-Mumbai highway is a game-changer as the travel time has come down from 18 to seven hours.

Would the outcome of the Lok Sabha polls have been different if you had implemented these schemes earlier?

The opposition created a fake narrative in the LS elections claiming the Constitution would be changed. They created a false fear in the minds of Muslims, Dalits, and tribals by propagating that 400-plus seats were being sought to change the Constitution. Now, there is no such narrative. Does the state have the power to change the Constitution? Can the state government end reservations? This state election is on local issues. You can’t mislead people all the time.

You said development is the main issue. But UP CM Yogi Adityanath said ‘batenge to katenge’ in election rallies. 

Our main agenda is development. What they (Yogi) meant to say is that in a democracy, people should come out and vote in large numbers. (He is) asking people to come together and vote. That is what even the government is saying to increase the vote percentage. Maharashtra today is playing a big role in fulfilling Modiji’s vision of making India a developed nation by 2047.

Demand for Maratha reservations has persisted over the last couple of elections. What is the solution?

We have already offered a solution by giving reservations to Marathas without reducing or impacting affirmative action for other communities. Politicians who came to power with the support of Marathas did nothing for the community. My government constituted the Justice Shinde Committee, and based on its recommendations, started issuing Kunabi certificates.

We convened a special session of the state assembly and gave a 10% quota to the Marathas. Opposition MVA went to the courts to get a stay. But the courts have not stayed the decision. We collected empirical data to demonstrate Marathas are a socially and educationally backward community. People have already started benefiting from the Maratha quota.

If your alliance wins the election, who will be the chief minister?

We will decide on that after the election. Unlike the MVA, there are no differences on this issue in our alliance. My target is to bring back the Mahayuti government. What is important is what we have done for the people of Maharashtra in the last two years. People are a better judge of my performance. We want to bring back a government that works for the people.

Shiv Sena was a big regional party with a statewide presence. Now there are three Senas. Can there ever be a reconciliation?

Why did we come out of the party? Because Uddhavji did not follow Bala Saheb’s thoughts and ideology. People wanted the Sena-BJP alliance to form the government. But the Congress-NCP-Uddhavji formed the government instead. He (Uddhav) did what Bala Saheb was opposed to. We are trying to spread Bala Saheb’s ideology. We are developing the state. New schemes are being implemented.

Bala Saheb’s original Shiv Sena is with us. We have the party symbol bow and arrow. The majority is with us. In the just concluded LS polls, UBT Sena squared up against us in 13 seats, out of which we won 7. We polled more votes than them. People have already decided which is the original Shiv Sena. UBT Sena is surviving on the Congress votes, while the original Sena voters have come to us. We expect to win a comfortable majority, and our alliance should get more than 170 seats.

How will you sustain the freebies promised by your alliance?

The Maharashtra government has enough potential and resources to sustain these schemes. We have the necessary infrastructure and connectivity. Our economy will grow. NITI Ayog says Mumbai and the MMR region alone have the potential to become a $1.5 trillion economy.