Mumbai: Though the six rebel Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs who are expected to switch over to the Shiv Sena stayed away from the event marking the 60th anniversary of the foundation of the party at the Nesco ground in Goregaon on Friday, deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde could not stay away from the topic and threatened that there was more to come.“This is just a trailer. Picture abhi baki hai (the movie is yet to unfold). See what lies ahead,” he said.Mocking the Shiv Sena (UBT) and its MP Sanjay Raut, who spent the previous two days publicly hurling abuses at the rebel MPs, Shinde said: “Some dogs have been barking. They come in packs and bark. The tiger roams alone and he hunts and roars.”He said he was also confident that the Mahayuti would win all the 11 legislative council seats which went to the polls this week.The six MPs reportedly stayed away from the rally because of possible legal hurdles created by their presence on a Shiv Sena platform before the switchover. Their rebellion has been termed ‘Operation Tiger’ by Shinde.The Shiv Sena (UBT) had claimed it would counteract the poaching with ‘Operation Tudva (Beat Them UP)’. Lashing out at the party, Shinde said: “For Operation Tudva, they will actually have to face us. I have conducted an operation without being a doctor,” he said.Shinde’s 45-minute speech was mainly an attack against the Shiv Sena (UBT). “They have no one left. They just have forks and spoons,” he said.On the other hand, there was a “waiting list” to join his party, said Shinde. “We do not think of me but we. Those who think of themselves should realise that circumstances have changed,” he said.Accusing the Shiv Sena (UBT) of nepotism, he said that his son, MP Shrikant Shinde, had refused key posts including a central cabinet berth. “He said the cabinet post should be given to a party worker and it went to Prataprao Jadhav. In our party, the posts do not go to the sons of MPs, MLAs and ministers,” he said.Shinde said the split in the Shiv Sena, which he led four years ago, had been a resounding success. “The people have accepted us. I had said that if my rebel MLAs did not win, I would quit politics. From 40 MLAs we have now became 60,” he said.He reiterated that the Shiv Sena (UBT) had deserted its core Hindutva ideology to gain power. “The Shiv Sena is a saffron storm. They have forgotten saffron for the chair. They have allied with those that Balasaheb criticised. Can this be an heir?” he said.Shinde said that those who had opposed the BJP in different states and supported the Congress had suffered.“This includes the Shiv Sena (UBT), DMK, RJD, Mamata Banerjee,” he said. “The mantra of the Congress is that we will not win, nor will we let you win.”
