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The routine check of Uddhav Thackeray's luggage during a campaign event in Maharashtra has sparked a heated political row between his faction of the Shiva Sena and the group led by Eknath Shinde. The incident, which occurred shortly after Thackeray's arrival to address a rally in Yavatmal, has ignited accusations of bias and fueled tensions ahead of the upcoming state Assembly elections.
Thackeray's party, the Shiv Sena (UBT), has vehemently protested the check, questioning whether the bags of prominent leaders from the ruling party, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, were similarly scrutinized during their campaigns. Sanjay Raut, a strongman within Thackeray's faction, has demanded answers, accusing the authorities of selectively targeting his party.
The Shinde Sena, however, has swiftly refuted these claims, asserting that Shinde's bags were indeed checked during campaigning in Nashik earlier this year. The party spokesperson, Krishna Hegde, dismissed Raut's allegations as a 'habit of making wild accusations' and highlighted that Shinde did not protest the check, unlike the Uddhav Thackeray camp.
The incident has further escalated tensions, with Thackeray openly questioning the officer who searched his bags about the selective nature of the check. He challenged the officer to inspect the bags of prominent leaders like Devendra Fadnavis, Narendra Modi, and Amit Shah when they campaign in the region. The officer, however, responded that the senior leaders hadn't yet campaigned in the area. The entire exchange, captured on video, has been shared on social media, adding fuel to the controversy.
The row over checking bags is a recurring theme in Indian elections, with parties often accusing each other of transporting large sums of cash to influence voters. The search of Shinde's bags in May was also prompted by allegations of money being transported, though officials ultimately found nothing objectionable. In response to the recent controversy, the Election Commission sources have clarified that strict protocols were followed for checking the helicopters of political leaders during campaigning, citing the instance of Amit Shah's choppers being checked during the April-June general elections.
The Maharashtra Assembly elections, scheduled for November 20, are set to be a closely contested battle between the two factions of the Shiv Sena, with Uddhav Thackeray's group allied with the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party, and Eknath Shinde's faction forming a coalition with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The controversy over the bag check has added another layer of complexity to the already heated electoral race, underscoring the intense political rivalry and the heightened scrutiny surrounding election procedures.
Source: "Have You Searched D Fadnavis?" Sena vs Sena In Uddhav Thackeray Bag Row