Milind Deora quits Congress, joins Shiv Sena in presence of CM Shinde

MUMBAI: Former Union Minister Milind Deora on Sunday joined the Shiv Sena in the presence of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde after quitting the Congress earlier in the day.

The former South Mumbai Lok Sabha MP joined the ruling party in a function in Varsha, the official residence of the chief minister, in the afternoon.

In a post on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, Deora had earlier announced his resignation from the Congress.

“Today marks the conclusion of a significant chapter in my political journey. I have tendered my resignation from the primary membership of the Congress, ending my family’s 55 year relationship with the party. I am grateful to all leaders, colleagues and karyakartas for their unwavering support over the years,” he said.

Deora was upset over the past few days after Shiv Sena (UBT) laid claim to the South Mumbai Lok Sabha seat, which he had represented earlier.

However, in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls he was defeated from the seat by the undivided Shiv Sena’s Arvind Sawant, now with the Thackeray faction, which is allied with the Congress and NCP as part of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi.

Earlier, senior Congress leader Ashok Chavan had said the understanding in the MVA was to not disturb the sitting MP, which meant the South Mumbai Lok Sabha seat would go into the Thackeray-led outfit’s kitty rather than the grand old party.