For Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, the trust vote was an emotional moment. With tears in his eyes, Shinde was delighted yet choked with grief.
Having engineered the perfect coup with Shiv Sena legislators who were unhappy with the Uddhav Thackeray leadership, one would have expected Shinde to don a wide smile when the Speaker declared his government safe. But Shinde teared up remembering his gurus — Shiv Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray and mentor ‘Dharamveer’ Anand Dighe.
The CM had to fight tears towards the end of the session when he addressed the House and spoke of his struggles. He recalled how he rose through the ranks despite being wary of entering full-fledged politics.
Shinde spoke of the traumatic experience of losing two of his children, Dipesh and Shubhada, to a boat accident in 2000. Standing on the floor of the Assembly, Shinde’s voice cracked when he spoke about the tragedy. Composing himself he recounted how his mentor Anand Dighe asked him to wipe away his tears, bring himself together and make himself a strong and effective politician.
“It was the darkest day of my life. This incident took place on June 2, 2000. I had nothing left within me, I was mentally exhausted. At that time, Anand Dighe sahib used to come to my house every day and speak to me about making a difference. He said he would stay firmly behind me,” Shinde said.
Eyes welling up, the newly ordained Chief Minister said: “I was asked what I would do next and I said that my family needed me after the tragedy. That’s when Dighe sahib said that society also needs me, that my family was not small but one big family in the Shiv Sena.”
Shinde was then given the responsibility of the Thane shakha, a prestigious post. He grew to become the House leader in the Thane municipal corporation. “I was given several tough assignments but they made me what I am today,” Shinde said.
Despite an emotional start, Shinde ended his speech on a triumphant note. “There was so much distrust. I was very upset after Vidhan Parishad (Legislative Council elections) and that’s when I started calling people. I didn’t know what I was going to do. But I was hurt. You had our tower location. You put nakabandi in place. But I am an experienced politician, I know how to evade a nakabandi,” he said.
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