'Don’t Sell Loyalty For Money': Uddhav Thackeray To Shiv Sena (UBT) Leaders Ahead Of BMC Polls

Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday asked his party cadre not to fall prey to monetary offers for switching sides and appealed to them to stay united for the sake of Mumbai.

The comments come ahead of the polls to various local and civic bodies in Maharashtra, including the cash-rich Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), likely to be held later this year.

The Shiv Sena split in June 2022 after a rebellion led by Eknath Shinde and resulted in the collapse of the then Thackeray-headed Maha Vikas Aghadi government.

Thackeray addressed a closed-door meeting of the Sena (UBT) shakha pramukhs in Mumbai on Sunday, a party source said.

The source quoted Thackeray as saying that the shakha pramukhs and other lower-rung cadres form the core strength of the party, and because of their unity and strength, the organisation won elections in Mumbai in the past.

"For the civic polls, unity is necessary. You may be getting monetary offers to switch sides. For how much time will the money suffice? Those who want to finish off Uddhav Thackeray and Shiv Sena have only business angle in mind. They want to sell off Mumbai and hand it over to corporates," the source quoted Thackeray as saying.

"Those who are falling prey to monetary considerations don't understand that they are being used and will be thrown away later," the former chief minister said.

He asked the shakha pramukhs to reach out to people in all the 227 wards of the BMC, strengthen the grassroot network and connect with the people, the source said.

Ahead of the coming local body polls, the BJP-led Mahayuti state government has issued orders for ward delimitation in all 29 municipal corporations, including Mumbai.

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