Newsmaker | Thackeray loyalist to Shinde inner circle to ‘budding rebel’?: Who is Maharashtra minister Uday Samant

Then, connected Monday, Shiv Sena (UBT) person Sanjay Raut said Samant was “being groomed arsenic a imaginable replacement for Shinde”. “He (Sawant) has gone to Davos with him (Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis). Now, determination is simply a discord successful the (Mahayuti) confederation implicit guardian ministership (the parties person issues implicit appointments). If Shinde cannot power his ministers, however tin helium lead?” Raut said.

While Samant dismissed the statements arsenic “political childishness” and said they were attempts to origin a rift betwixt him and Shinde, a speech has begun astir the Industries Minister’s rising illustration successful the Shiv Sena.

On Wednesday, Raut said Samant was going to interruption the Shiv Sena. “Samant has gone to Davos to interruption the Sena MLAs and MPs. He has the blessings of Delhi and the afloat enactment of Delhi (a notation to the BJP’s apical brass). Fadnavis does not privation Shinde anymore. Tomorrow, PM Narendra Modi volition besides not privation Shinde,” Raut claimed.

Samant responded that successful the adjacent 3 months, respective Sena UBT and Congress MLAs and MPs would beryllium joining the Sena.

“Three MPs and 5 MLAs of Shiv Sena (UBT) person met Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and volition soon articulation Shiv Sena. Along with this, erstwhile MLAs, erstwhile corporators and bureau bearers of different parties and Congress person besides met the party’s main person Eknath Shinde and volition commencement moving for the Shiv Sena successful the adjacent 3 months,” Samant said successful a video that helium released from Davos.

Ratnagiri’s Samant

Samant started his vocation with the undivided Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). He got his archetypal summons arsenic an MLA from the Ratnagiri constituency successful the Konkan portion successful 2004. He won the predetermination and past managed to clasp it for the NCP again successful 2009.

In his 2nd word arsenic MLA, Samant became the curate of authorities successful the municipality improvement section during the Congress-NCP authorities nether Prithviraj Chavan’s word arsenic CM.

He discontinue the NCP successful 2014 to articulation the undivided Shiv Sena and was elected from Ratnagiri again connected a Sena ticket. This time, his ministerial responsibilities grew and helium was fixed complaint of the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority. This was besides the clip helium is said to person go adjacent to Fadnavis who was the CM.

Samant was besides seen arsenic adjacent to the Thackeray family, and his stature wrong the larger Sena besides grew. He went connected to go the lawman person of the Shiv Sena successful 2018.

In 2019, Samant was again elected from Ratnagiri — his 4th consecutive word — and recovered a much high-profile posting successful the short-lived Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA government: Ministry of Higher and Technical Education.

When Shinde launched his rebellion against Uddhav successful June 2022 and divided the Sena, Samant chose the former’s side, mounting disconnected a flurry of questions astir his loyalty.

But since then, helium has managed to go a portion of Shinde’s adjacent ellipse arsenic well.

In 2022, arsenic Shinde became CM with Fadnavis past arsenic his deputy, Samant got different elevation: helium became the Industries Minister successful the Eknath Shinde-led authorities government.

Considered arsenic an educated and blase look wrong the Shinde-led Sena, Samant was appointed the party’s spokesperson successful 2022.

He has besides had his just stock of controversies.

He felt the vigor connected him erstwhile Maharashtra mislaid retired connected respective concern projects of companies specified arsenic Vedanta Foxconn, Tata Airbus, Bulk Drug Park among others.

Between 2023-’24, a multi-billion dollar petrochemical refinery task successful Konkan witnessed respective protests by locals. The locals were acrophobic astir its imaginable interaction connected the situation and the livelihoods of section communities which are mostly babelike upon the cultivation of mangoes, jack fruits and cashews and fishing. The locals claimed that Samant was pushing for the task contempt their opposition.