Hingoli: With mere 10 days remaining for Maharashtra assembly elections, all political parties are taking disciplinary actions against the rebels. Shiv Sena-Uddhav Thackeray faction on Saturday expelled former MP from Hingoli Subhash Wankhede for anti-party activities. Wankhede was seeking ticket for the assembly polls from the Hadgaon constituency, however in the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) seat-sharing, the constituent went in Congress’ kitty. The MVA has fielded Congress’ Madhavrao Jawalkar from the seat.
In rebellion, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Subhash Wankhede filed the nomination form as an independent candidate and denied to withdraw after party urging to support the official MVA candidate. Notably, Wankhede was MP from Congress’ ticket, and joined Sen UBT in 2022.
“With the order of Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, former MP Subhash Wankhede has been expelled from the party for anti-party activities,” the letter issued by Sena UBT said. Meanwhile, On November 7, Congress too expelled eight of its own rebels, signaling a tightening grip on party discipline ahead of the election.
Several rebels in the MVA and Mahayuti withdrew their nominations by the deadline on October 29. However, the ones who denied, are facing strict actions from their respective parties.
Rebels In Mahayuti
Rebels have emerged across both alliances, though the Mahayuti, comprising Shiv Sena, BJP, and NCP, has seen a larger number of dissenters. Earlier this week, the BJP took strong action by expelling 40 members who had defied the party’s instructions. NCP and Shiv Sena followed the suit.
On Friday, NCP announced the expulsion of eight prominent party rebels, accusing them of undermining the party’s interests and tarnishing its reputation. While, Shiv Sena has expelled at least three of its leaders for anti-party activities.