Shiv Sena leader Arvind Sawant quits NDA ministry

Shiv Sena leader Arvind Sawant on Monday submitted his resignation from the NDA government in the Prime Minister's Office, after he was denied an appointment by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to hand over his papers in person.

Sawant said it was “not morally right” for him to continue in the Union Cabinet after the top BJP leaders tried to paint Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray as a “liar” by reneging on their promise to share power equally in Maharashtra where the two parties had contested the assembly elections as alliance partners.

“Since there is no trust left, I have decided to resign,” Sawant, the Union Minister for Heavy Industries, told reporters here displaying a copy of his resignation letter.

He alleged that the BJP was resorting to “lies” by denying the agreement reached between the leaders of the two allies before the assembly elections.

“I have submitted resignation to the Prime Minister’s Office today (Monday). I had sought time to meet the prime minister but was not given an appointment. You can imagine what this means for the alliance,” he said.

Asked if the Sena has snapped its ties with the BJP, Sawant said, “when I have resigned, you can understand what it means.”

“The BJP had agreed with Sena to an equal division of seats and power but it has now rejected this,” Sawant said.