Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was seen at Radisson Blu, the hotel where 40 rebel Shiv Sena MLAs are being hosted. His convoy, however, left before the MLAs arrived.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma stepped into the Maharashtra political crisis when he visited the hotel hosting the rebel Shiv Sena on Wednesday, June 22. Sarma, who was taking stock of the flood relief camps in Assam on Tuesday evening, was seen checking into the Radisson Blu in Guwahati and his convoy was seen exiting early in the morning before the rebel Sena MLAs arrived.
The rebel Sena MLAs, including Eknath Shinde, who were holed up at Le Meridien resort in Surat, Gujarat, landed at the Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi Airport in Assam around 6.30 am on Wednesday and drove straight to the Radisson Blu in the Gotanagar area of Guwahati. Outside the airport, Shinde claimed to have the support of 40 MLAs.
While the Shinde camp remained tight-lipped on the developments within it, Shinde said: “We have not left Balasaheb Thackeray’s Shiv Sena. We shall not leave it. We have been following Balasaheb’s Hindutva and will carry it further.”
On shifting base to Guwahati from Surat in Gujarat, he said it was merely a tourism visit.
Bacchu Kadu, an independent MLA from Maharashtra and minister of state from Akola district told India Today he is also in Guwahati. “We will return only after a change in power. No one has been brought in forcibly. Shiv sainiks and independent MLAs wanted a change in power because the NCP and Congress are in power. We don’t have any grouse with Uddhav Thackeray,” he said.
He said that a few other MLAs are likely to join the rebel camp on Wednesday.
