Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday took a dig at Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray for not attending the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh and said the latter was scared of calling himself a Hindu.

Considered among the holiest pilgrimages by Hindus, the Maha Kumbh started on January 13 and concluded on February 26. The Maha Kumbh 2025 saw a record 66 crore devotees thronging the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati.

“Those who skipped Maha Kumbh should be asked why they skipped it. They keep saying they are Hindus. Bal Thackeray proudly gave the slogan ‘garv se kaho hum Hindu hain (proclaim it proudly that we are Hindu) but now they are scared of calling themselves a Hindu and call (Bal Thackeray) Hinduhriday Samrat,” Mr Shinde told reporters without naming Uddhav Thackeray.

Mr Shinde was responding to a question on Mr Thackeray and the Gandhi family of the Congress not attending the mega congregation.

The Deputy CM also said the issue connected to the post of guardian ministers would be resolved soon.

The issues in Mahayuti have been addressed amicably and with coordination, he asserted.

After naming Girish Mahajan (BJP) and Aditi Tatkare (NCP) as guardian ministers of Nashik and Raigad, respectively, the state government put the order on hold as Shiv Sena staked claim over the two posts.

Meanwhile, Suhas Minchekar, a former MLA who was associated with Shiv Sena (UBT), joined the Shinde-led Shiv Sena during the day.

Mr Minchekar, who hails from the Kolhapur, is the third former MLA associated with Shiv Sena (UBT) to have joined Mr Shinde in less than a fortnight.

On February 15, former Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Rajan Salvi joined the Shinde-led Sena. Salvi, a three-term MLA from Rajapur, lost to Shiv Sena’s Kiran Samant in the November assembly polls.

This month former MLA Subhash Bane also joined the Shiv Sena. Bane was an MLA of the undivided Shiv Sena but had rebelled along with Narayan Rane and unsuccessfully contested a bypoll as a Congress candidate. He later rejoined the undivided Shiv Sena.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) has been witnessing a series of desertions since its rout in the Maharashtra assembly polls.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)