"Promised Balasaheb I'll Make Shiv Sena Chief Minister": Uddhav Thackeray

Amid delay in finalising the seat-sharing pact for the assembly polls which are less than a month away, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday said that talks with BJP chief Amit Shah were progressing well and a final decision would be announced soon.

He said he would fulfil the promise he had made to his father and late Sena supremo Bal Thackeray of making a Shiv sainik (party worker) the chief minister of Maharashtra.

Uddhav Thackeray was addressing party workers and ticket aspirants at Rang Sharda Auditorium in Bandra.

"If the alliance materialises, Shiv Sena is not the one to backstab. We oppose openly," he said. Stating that he wants the Sena to be power in Maharashtra, he said, "I had promised Balasaheb that I will make a Shiv sainik the chief minister of Maharashtra. I have vowed to fulfil this promise."

"I want power in Maharashtra so I have called aspirants from all 288 seats. I want to strengthen the party in all the constituencies. If alliance with BJP happens, Shiv Sena will work to ensure BJP's victory in the seats they contest. BJP's support should always be there for Sena candidates where they contest," he said.

"I want to ensure that our election preparedness is complete in the constituencies where Shiv Sena will contest," he said, urging the cadres to stay loyal to the party and allies.

"If Shiv sainiks trust me and stay with me, I can confidently move ahead on the political path," he said. Mocking senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar, who resigned as an MLA on Friday evening, Mr Thackeray said, "I will not quit politics and do farming. I will work as a Shiv sainik."