Denied poll ticket Eknath Shinde's MLA Srinivas Vanga regrets leaving Uddhav Thackeray, goes missing
Mumbai/IBNS: Ahead of the Maharashtra election, an MLA from Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena faction has gone missing after he failed to bag a ticket for his assembly seat, Palghar.
Before going missing, the MLA, Shrinivas Vanga, had expressed regret for joining the Shinde camp.
His wife told the media that he wanted to meet Uddhav Thackeray and apologise to him in person.
According to reports, the MLA packed a bag and left home at 7 pm on Monday, and has been unreachable since then.
His family said he had been severely upset since the announcement of the seat.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has spoken to Vanga's wife over the phone.
Srinivas Vanga was among the first MLAs to join the Shinde camp following the latter's rebellion against Uddhav Thackeray.
Speaking to the media before going missing, Vanga repented saying he left a "god-like person (Uddhav Thackeray) for Shinde and now I have been betrayed".
He said Shinde had assured all sitting MLAs that they would be fielded again in this election. However, the Palghar ticket went to former MP Rajendra Gavit, who left the BJP to join Shinde ahead of the polls.
While Vanga expected to get a ticket from Palghar's Dahanu, he was offered a seat in the legislative council, which according to him was like a "lollipop".
Breaking down during the media interaction, he said he was "paying the price for being loyal".
His disappearance ahead of polls has now triggered speculation whether Vanga will return to the Uddhav Thackeray faction.
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