Leaders of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction have said the present turmoil in the party is just a passing phase and expressed confidence that the Sena will "rise again like a phoenix".
They were speaking on Sunday at the launch of the Thackeray camp's mass outreach 'Mahaprabhodhan Yatra' in Maharashtra's Thane district, the stronghold of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, whose rebellion brought down the Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government in June this year.
On June 30, Shinde was sworn in as the chief minister along with Bharatiya Janata Party's Devendra Fadnavis as his deputy.
Addressing a gathering at an auditorium in Thane on Sunday, MLA Bhaskar Yadav of the Uddhav Thackeray faction said the Shiv Sena under the leadership of Thackerays has witnessed several ups and downs.
"This is only a passing phase and the Sena would rise again like a phoenix," he said.
Jadhav claimed the day is not far when Fadnavis will take away Shinde's chair.
He said there was no example in history of Hindus snatching power from their brothers and father, and claimed this was done only by Mughal rulers.
Sena MP Vinayak Raut said the efforts by opponents and betrayers to finish off the Sena will not work and the party will once again rise with full zeal.
Shiv Sena deputy leader Sushma Andhare claimed that CM Shinde was just a puppet in the hands of the BJP.
"We had enough of 'man ki baat', what is now needed is 'jan ki baat', hence this yatra has been organised," she said.
Sena MP Rajan Vichare said the mass outreach programme began from the place where the party was born.
The yatra will cover Navi Mumbai and other parts of the state in the coming days, he added.
