Shiv Sena to back Oppn's Vice Presidential pick Margaret Alva; explains stand on Murmu

Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena will support the Opposition joint candidate Margaret Alva for the Vice Presidential elections, said party spokesperson Sanjay Raut on Sunday. The announcement was made after his meeting with NCP supremo Sharad Pawar last evening.

The Shiv Sena had recently grabbed headlines over its decision to support BJP-led NDA's Presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu just days after the Thackeray government was overthrown in Maharashtra following a rebellion by party leader Eknath Shinde with support from the saffron camp.

Defending the party's stand on backing the NDA candidate, Sanjay Raut said his party lent support to Droupadi Murmu out of "sentiment" as she is a tribal woman and Maharashtra is largely tribal.

"Droupadi Murmu is a woman who belongs to tribal society... Maharashtra is largely tribal. Many of our MPs and MLAs are tribals. There is a sentiment with Murmu. Our party leaders also have sentiments about Droupadi Murmu, that's why the President of Shiv Sena has spoken of supporting her as a candidate for Presidential elections, while Shiv Sena will support Margaret Alva as its Vice Presidential candidate," Raut told reporters.

The Rajya Sabha MP had earlier stated that Sena supporting Murmu did not mean it supported the BJP.

Shiv Sena had formed the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in coalition with the NCP and Congress in 2019 after severing decades-old ties with the BJP over leadership issues. Uddhav Thackeray's stint as Chief Minister was however cut short after his government was overthrown by Eknath Shinde's rebellion. The leader went on to become the chief minister of Maharashtra with BJP's Devendra Fadnavis as his deputy.

Vice Presidential election

A day ago, the BJP announced West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar as the NDA's candidate for the Vice Presidential election.

On Sunday, shortly after a meeting of Opposition leaders at Sharad Pawar's residence, former Rajasthan Governor Margaret Alva was named as the joint Opposition candidate for VP polls. The TMC and AAP, which skipped the meeting, also extended support to Alva's nomination. 

The elections will be held on August 6 and the last date for filing nominations for the election is July 19.