Shiv Sena (UBT) Nagpur City Chief Kapse, Others Join Congress

Nagpur: With municipal elections around the corner, political atmosphere in the city has heated up as the Congress inducted Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray faction) city chief Deepak Kapse into the party at an event held at the Devadiya Congress Bhavan.The Shiv Sena has warned that this move violates alliance dharma, while the Congress maintains that Kapse originally belonged to the party and that his return has further strengthened the alliance.Kapse, along with former corporators Nana Zhode, Shrikant Kaikade, and several other workers, joined the Congress. Discussions on seat-sharing for the upcoming municipal elections have already begun among the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) partners, and Kapse's defection from the Uddhav Sena is being seen as a major setback for his former party.Kapse served as corporator for two consecutive terms and was also a member of the standing committee. In 2017, he rebelled by contesting against the Congress's official candidate. Known as a staunch supporter of senior Congress leader Satish Chaturvedi, Kapse followed Chaturvedi's political trajectory over the years. When the Maha Vikas Aghadi was in power, the Shiv Sena had sent Chaturvedi's son Dushyant to the legislative council through the local self-govt constituency in Yavatmal. Around that time, Kapse and several others had joined the Shiv Sena.After the Mahayuti alliance came to power in the state, Dushyant Chaturvedi switched to Shinde Sena, while many of his workers remained with the Uddhav faction. It is believed that Chaturvedi played a key role in facilitating Kapse's return to the Congress.‘They Are Migrant Workers'"Those who have moved from Shiv Sena to Congress were never truly part of the Shiv Sena. They were migrant workers who came only when the party was in power. The Sena will suffer no loss because of their departure — in fact, loyal party members will now get opportunities to contest. Talking about the Maha Vikas Aghadi on one hand and poaching alliance partner's members on the other is not right," said Shiv Sena spokesperson Satish Harde.