The Shiv Sena (UBT) on Wednesday sharply criticised its ally, NCP(SP) leader Sharad Pawar, for honouring Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, exposing cracks in the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).
Sena (UBT) spokesperson Sanjay Raut said that honoring someone who caused a split in the Shiv Sena and "weakened Maharashtra" has deeply offended the sentiments of the Marathi people.
He added that Eknath Shinde, with the support of Amit Shah, was responsible for the split, and felicitating him was essentially the same as honoring the BJP leader.
On Tuesday, Pawar, who heads the NCP (SP) faction, felicitated Shinde with the award 'Mahadji Shinde Rashtra Gaurav Puraskar', on the occasion of the 98th All India Marathi Literary Conference, which the NCP founder chairs.
While Pawar's party said it was a programme about literature and not politics, the BJP termed the felicitation an admission by the NCP (SP) president that Shinde was a better chief minister than Uddhav Thackeray.
Raut said that Pawar should not have attended the event, as Shinde had toppled the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government in Maharashtra in 2022 through "betrayal."
"Certain things should be avoided in politics. Yesterday, Sharad Pawar did not felicitate Shinde, but he felicitated Amit Shah. This is our feeling," he told ANI.
"Giving such an honor to someone we consider an enemy of Maharashtra is a blow to Maharashtra's pride. Pawar must have thought differently, but such politics has not been well received by the people of Maharashtra," Raut said.
"You (Sharad Pawar) are a senior politician, and we respect you. But the ones who split Balasaheb Thackeray's Shiv Sena with the help of Amit Shah and weakened Maharashtra, you are honoring such people. This has hurt the sentiments of the Marathi people," he added.
"We don't understand your Delhi politics, but we too understand politics," Raut further said.
During the event, Pawar said that Shinde was one of the leaders who played a critical role in steering Thane's politics in the right direction. He also noted that Shinde is one of the leaders who is well-versed with civic issues over the past 50 years.
To this Raut said, "Pawar Saheb has incorrect information. It is the Shiv Sena that took Thane's politics in the right direction. Thane's development began during the tenure of Satish Pradhan, the first mayor of Thane. There were many Shiv Sena mayors after that. If Pawar Saheb needs information on this, we will send Rajan Vichare (former mayor, MLA, and MP) with all the relevant files."
NCP (SP) leader Rohit Pawar said Raut's reaction is surprising considering that Maharashtra has the tradition of civilised politics of Yashwantrao Chavan and Bal Thackeray, and senior Pawar carried this tradition forward, never allowing socio-cultural programmes to become a barrier due to political differences.
He said Raut's hasty reaction must be due to BJP's attempts to muddy the state's politics and hurt Maharashtra's pride in the last two-three years.
Meanwhile, Eknath Shinde termed Raut's remarks as unfortunate, and said it is due to "heartburn" caused by the award.
(With inputs from agencies)