Mumbai:
The Shiv Sena has been rocked by rebellion soon after declaring its first list of candidates. Three ticket seekers have revolted.
Former Shiv Sena MP Pradeep Jaiswal quit the party hours after he was denied a ticket from Aurangabad, after accusing Uddhav Thackeray's personal assistant of selling party tickets.
The allegations were denied by the party, but Uddhav's estranged cousin Raj added fuel to the fire.
The flames of rebellion are spreading to Mumbai, the Shiv Sena's bastion.
Sena Corporator Shashikant Patkar wants to contest as an Independent from Vile Parle. Another Corporator Rahul Shevale will do the same from the Anushakti Nagar seat. And Corporator Sunil Prabhu has made a bid for the Dindoshi seat likely to go to senior leader Gajanan Kiritkar.
Also, supporters of MLA Sada Sarvankar protested outside Manohar Joshi's house, accusing him of blocking the ticket.
The Shiv Sena was once known as a one-man party run by the iron hand of Bal Thackeray. But it saw a rash of rebellions in the 2004 assembly elections under the leadership of Uddhav Thackeray, and rebellions are now here to stay.
The Shiv Sena's alliance partner, the BJP, is also facing the heat from local cadres in Guhagarh, an RSS stronghold it ceded to the Shiv Sena. The sitting MP now wants to contest as an Independent. The saffron siblings once known for their discipline are now no better then their opposition.