Union minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Anurag Thakur said any worker of BJP can defeat Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray anytime.
Thakur was speaking to reporters after meeting BJP workers from the Mumbai South Central and Kalyan Lok Sabha constituencies, currently held by the Shiv Sena but the sitting MPs have declared their allegiance to the faction led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, an ally of the BJP in the state.
Queried whether he would contest from Maharashtra if challenged by Worli MLA and former minister Aaditya Thackeray, the BJP leader said, Any BJP worker from here can defeat Aaditya on any given day. You do not need Anurag Thakur to come down here to contest against him.
Why to talk about those people who cannot even save their party, Thakur said apparently referring to a bulk of Shiv Sena MLAs led by Shinde rebelling against the Thackerays last June. The Shinde-led faction is called Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena (BSS).
When asked why was he visiting the constituencies of the BJP’s ally BSS, Thakur said, The BJP respects its allies. I am visiting these constituencies to strengthen our base so that we could win the next (Lok Sabha) elections. We were allies at the time of the last Lok Sabha elections.
He said CM Shinde and Deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis have very good coordination between them. Without taking names, he said, “Some people in the country like to create disturbance by making irrelevant or erratic comments. Those remarks should not be taken seriously, Thakur said.