The day after Shiv Sena expelled former party Member of Parliament Shivajirao Adhalrao-Patil, the party withdrew the expulsion order.
The expulsion of Adhalrao was announced by the Sena in party mouthpiece Saamana. However, party secretary and MP Vinayak Raut on Sunday issued a clarification. “A news item was inadvertently published in Saamana today regarding expulsion of Shivajirao Adhalrao-Patil. However, he continues to be party deputy leader. This information is being released from party’s central office,” stated Raut.
Adhalrao told The Indian Express that the party leadership was apparently upset with him because he had congratulated Eknath Shinde on becoming the chief minister through a Facebook post. “Our party chief (Uddhav Thackeray) told me that he was upset with me because of the Facebook post. He said the post has gone viral…I told him that I congratulated Maharashtra’s chief minister and have done nothing wrong. He then said ‘let’s forget and let’s meet on Tuesday’,” he said.
Adhalrao, a three-time MP from Shirur constituency of Pune district, said he was taken aback when he read in Saamana that he had been expelled. “When I called up the party chief, he told me that the news was published by mistake…,” he said.
Addressing a press conference later in the day, Adhalrao said, “I am in a state of shock. There are so many congratulatory posts for CM, but why was action taken only against me… Have I committed such a big crime?”
When asked whether he was still in the Shiv Sena, Adhalrao said,”When I have not left the party, how does the question arise.”
Adhalrao said in the past too, there were rumours that he would leave the party. “I told our party chief that I have been in the party for 18 years. I was asked by NCP not to contest the Lok Sabha seat in 2009 and in return, they promised to accommodate me in the Rajya Sabha, but I refused to accept the offer….I asked our party chief whether I have done anything wrong during this 18-year period. Our party chief said he had heard rumours that I would leave the party, but I never quit the party… he said he was proud of me.”