Chhagan Bhujbal returning to Shiv Sena? His son meets Uddhav Thackeray

Senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Chhagan Bhujbal’s son Pankaj met Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday afternoon. Pankaj’s visit to Matoshree — Thackeray’s residence in suburban Bandra — comes days after Chhagan was granted bail by the Bombay high court in a money-laundering case.

Terming the meeting a “courtesy call”, a Sena leader discounted all political conclusions. “It was a courtesy call by Pankaj Bhujbal. The meeting with Uddhavji lasted about 15 minutes. There were no political discussions between the two leaders,” the leader said.

After the meeting, there were speculations if the 70-year-old, who started his political career with Shiv Sena, plans a comeback. Chhagan enjoys the support of the strong Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the state. Following the support of the Maratha community for the NCP, a significant base of the party comes from the OBCs that comprise Vanjari, Mali and Dhangar and some other communities. The senior Sena leader, however, dismissed the speculation.

Chhagan quit the party in 1991 and subsequently the ties between the two families deteriorated. However, the senior leader visited Sena founder Bal Thackeray in 2007.

On May 8, in an editorial in the Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamana’, the party said Chhagan’s arrest in the case was “fate’s revenge” on the NCP leader for his attempts to put Bal Thackeray behind bars when Chhagan was the state home minister two decades ago. Chhagan was arrested by ED in March 2016. It alleged that the Bhujbals received kickbacks for awarding various government contracts.