According to a spokesperson for the Shiv Sena, rebel MLAs from Maharashtra have donated 51 lakh to help with flood relief efforts in Assam, where they have been camped for the past week. The Sena legislators have raised the red flag of mutiny against their party, under the leadership of senior Minister Eknath Shinde. These MLAs first arrived in Guwahati on June 22 and then flew in several groups via chartered flights from Surat in Gujarat.
The Sena rebel MLAs’ spokesperson, Deepak Kesarkar, spoke to PTI in response to criticism that they were lodging in a luxury hotel in Guwahati while other areas of Assam were experiencing severe flooding “The Assam Chief Minister’s Relief Fund has received a 51 lakh rupee donation from Mr. Shinde as our contribution to their ongoing rescue efforts. The situation of the locals cannot be ignored.” The rebel MLAs have agreed to leave Guwahati and go to a location close to Mumbai, according to Mr. Kesarkar, who also noted that Maharashtra Governor B.Sc. Koshyari has asked the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) administration to take a floor test on Thursday.
A close aide of Mr. Shinde, however, said the group will be staying in a Goa-based hotel and reach Mumbai by 9.30 a.m. on Thursday.
The delegation will overnight in a hotel in Goa, according to a close aide to Mr. Shinde, and will be in Mumbai by 9.30 a.m. on Thursday. In order to take on the struggling Sena-NCP-Congress government led by Uddhav Thackeray, Mr. Shinde said on Wednesday that he will come to Mumbai on Thursday.
