New Delhi: At a special dinner held on the eve of the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) polls, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, his deputy Devendra Fadnavis, and BJP leader Ashish Shelar shared the dais with Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad Pawar. Shinde stated on the occasion that Pawar sharing the dais with him and other BJP leaders may cause some people to sleepless nights. Despite not naming anyone, his remark appeared to be directed at his predecessor, Uddhav Thackeray.


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Shinde's rebellion against the Shiv Sena leadership caused the Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, in which the Sena shared power with the NCP and Congress, to collapse in June of this year. Shinde's revolt, which included 39 of the Sena's 55 legislators, caused the party to split. On October 20, polls will be held for the five office-bearer positions, nine MCA councillors, and two representatives for the general council of T-20, Mumbai. 


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Milind Narvekar, Thackeray's close aide, and NCP leader Jitendra Awhad have also filed nominations from the panel formed by Pawar and newly-appointed BCCI treasurer and BJP leader Ashish Shelar. Shinde was invited to the dinner meeting. "Pawar, Fadnavis and Shelar are on the same dais...It may give some people sleepless nights," CM Shinde said on the occasion. "But this is not the place to indulge in politics. All of us are fans and supporters of sports; hence we have come together for its development irrespective of our political differences," he said. The chief minister also promised that the state government would address outstanding issues, such as the renewal of the land lease for the city's Wankhede Stadium and outstanding police dues, as soon as possible.



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(With PTI inputs)