A day after Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said Shiv Sena (UBT) Chief Uddhav Thackeray was not his enemy, Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut Saturday did not rule out the possibility of an alliance with the BJP in future.

“’Yes, anything is possible in politics. There are no permanent enemies and permanent friends in politics,” Raut told the Indian Express when asked about Fadnavis’s statement.

Raut cited the case of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and said, “He (Nitish Kumar) was also a strong opponent of the BJP and now he is an ally of the BJP… therefore, in politics, anything can happen in the future.”

During an interview session in Nagpur on Friday, Fadnavis had said, “First, Uddhav Thackeray was a friend. Then, Raj Thackeray became a friend. While Raj is still a friend, Uddhav Thackeray is not an enemy.”

On Saturday, Raut said the BJP and the Shiv Sena were allies for 25 years. “Even before Fadnavis came into politics, the Sena and the BJP were friends. The Sena was the BJP’s… most trustworthy ally. But the BJP kicked us… but still I think anything is possible in politics,” he added. Asked whether ‘all’ means a possible tie-up with the BJP in the future, Raut replied in the affirmative.

After the Assembly elections and the ‘ouster’ of Eknath Shinde as chief minister, the Sena (UBT) has started singing a new tune. Even before the BJP decided to pick Fadnavis as the chief minister, Uddhav Thackeray said Fadnavis should be the CM. Thereafter, Uddhav Thackeray and his son Aditya Thackeray met Fadnavis and gave him a bouquet at the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly.

The alliance of the BJP and the undivided Shiv Sena broke after the 2019 Assembly elections. Both parties sparred over the chief ministerial post. The Shiv Sena then joined hands with the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) to form the Maha Vikas Aghadi Government. The BJP hit back after two and half years, first breaking the Sena into two and then the NCP. The BJP then formed the Mahayuti Government in alliance with the Eknath Shinde-led Sena and the NCP-led by Ajit Pawar.

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