Taking a dig at Milind Deora, who quit the Congress Party on Sunday, Shiv Sena’s Uddhav Thackeray faction leader, Sanjay Raut, said that now politics is all about power and ideology, and loyalty doesn’t exist. He also referred to Milind Deora’s father, Murli Deora, saying that he was a great leader who knew what to do for the party.
“Things like loyalty and ideology don’t exist now, the politics is all about power now. I knew Milind Deora, he was a big leader and had a special attachment with Congress,” Raut told the media when asked about the exit of Milind Deora, who is a former union minister.
In a setback for Congress, with just months left before the Lok Sabha elections, Milind Deora, a prominent leader in Maharashtra, announced his resignation from the party on Sunday. He was reportedly upset over the discussions surrounding seat sharing between Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) in the state.
The 47-year-old leader took to X (formerly Twitter) and wrote, “I have tendered my resignation from the primary membership of Congress, ending my family’s 55-year relationship with the party. I am grateful to all leaders, colleagues & karyakartas for their unwavering support over the years.”
Deora represented the Mumbai South Lok Sabha constituency before 2014. The Uddhav Sena has now staked a claim to contest the seat in the upcoming general elections, a move that has not been well-received by the Congress leader. Additionally, he expressed displeasure over Sanjay Raut’s comments suggesting that the Congress has to start from zero in Maharashtra. Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Congress are partners of the opposition alliance INDIA bloc.
It is speculated that Milind Deora is likely to join Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena, which is ruling the state in alliance with the BJP. However, he has dismissed it as “rumours”.
Meanwhile, the Congress took a swipe at Milind Deora by invoking his father. Senior party leader Jairam Ramesh said, “Murli Deora always stood by the Congress party, through thick and thin”.