Raj quits Sena posts, takes on Uddhav

Uddhav, his coterie of clerks are destroying party: Raj

The Shiv Sena received a major jolt today as disgruntled leader Raj Thackeray resigned from the party's executive committee and as head of party's students wing.

Launching an attack on Sena executive president and his cousin Uddhav Thackeray, Raj said, "Nominating Uddhav for the post of the party's working president was the biggest mistake of my political life."

The churning within the Sena took a violent form when supporters of Raj attacked the car of party mouthpiece Saamna editor Sanjay Raut and attacked the office of the party's labour front. Raut and most of labour wing office-bearers are considered close to Uddhav.

Concerned over the developments, Sena supremo Bal Thackeray called an emergency meeting of party leaders at his residence "Matoshree" to find a way out of the crisis.

Returning to Mumbai after a tour of Nasik, Raj addressed a rally of his supporters, billed as a show of strength, where he announced resignation as member of the party executive and the chief of the Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena, said to be his brain child.

Breaking his silence after sending a letter to the Sena supremo objecting to the style of functioning of Uddhav, Raj said he resigned from the posts as he did not wish to dance to the tune of a "coterie of petty clerks".

"These coterie of clerks are trying to destroy the party. I could not be party to their attempts. That's why I am quitting my post," he said.

Stating that he did not wish to leave the Sena, Raj said the Sena chief was like "god" to him and would continue to remain so. "I worship him but am not ready to accept the coterie of 'priests' who treat the temple as their own and dictate terms," he said.

"I cannot tolerate attempts of these self-proclaimed priests to come between me and my god," he said.

Raj clarified that he had no plans to join any other party and made fun of the invitation extended by former Sena MP and Congress spokesman Sanjay Nirupam to join the Congress.