Explained: How Eknath Shinde took a page out of Sharad Pawar’s rebellion of 1978

On 30 June, dissident leader Eknath Shinde became chief minister of Maharashtra after rebelling against the Shiv Sena.

#WATCH | Mumbai: Eknath Shinde takes oath as the Chief Minister of #Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/y6pJs1YeyY

— ANI (@ANI) June 30, 2022

With the support of nearly 50 MLAs, including 39 from Shiv Sena, he walked out of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition of the Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congres (NCP) and Congress and toppled the government, which was in power for the past two-and-a-half years. On Thursday, the one-time auto driver was sworn in as the 20th chief minister of Maharashtra, while Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stalwart Devendra Fadnavis took oath as the deputy CM, capping a day of surprises and bringing a dramatic end to the 10-day-old political crisis in the state. The coup carried out by Shinde has reminded people of the revolt that took place in 1978 in Maharashtra, the first of its kind in the state’s political history. Surprisingly, that upheaval was led by none other than Sharad Pawar — the now NCP chief and part of the fallen MVA government. The political coup was set in the post-Emergency era when the Indian National Congress had split into two factions, and the Maharashtra Assembly polls in 1978 had returned a split verdict. Here’s a look at what had happened then. How Pawar orchestrated the revolt After Emergency was lifted in 1977, the Congress broke into two factions - the Congress (I), headed by Indira Gandhi and Congress (Urs), headed by then Karnataka chief minister D Devraj Urs. However, after the 1978 Maharashtra Assembly elections, both joined hands and formed a government under the leadership of Vasantdada Patil. The Patil-led government was unsteady as it enjoyed a wafer-thin majority of just four seats. A no-confidence motion was brought in by the Opposition. Sharad Pawar, who was the then industries minister, initially backed the government to help it survive the motion. On 18 July 1978, Pawar threw up the biggest surprise when he went to the governor and submitted a letter regarding his 38 MLAs forming a new group. He also submitted a letter regarding support of other parties and another letter regarding his election as the legislature party leader. The governor then invited Pawar to take over as the chief minister. Pawar took the oath of office even as the assembly session was underway. The coup helped Pawar establish his image as a Maratha strongman. As per a PTI report, Pawar had reached out to then Janata Party president Chandrashekar with whom he shared good relations. “You will have to play a key role in this,” Chandrashekar had told Pawar, the report said. At 38, the Maratha strongman then became the youngest to become a chief minister and formed a new government called Samantar Congress (Parallel Congress). With the support of the Janata Party, the Peasants Workers Party (PWP) and other smaller parties. The government lasted for just about two years and was brought down after Congress led by Indira Gandhi returned to power in 1980. [caption id=“attachment_10857811” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  Sharad Pawar’s revolt of 1978 paved the way for him becoming the youngest chief minister at 38. PTI[/caption] Reason for Pawar’s revolt One of the primary reasons for Sharad Pawar’s rebellion was the “humiliating” treatment meted out to them. Interestingly, the MLAs who joined Eknath Shinde in his rebellion also stated that the NCP’s poor treatment towards them was the primary reason for discontent. Maval MLA Krishnarao Bhegde, a part of Sharad Pawar’s rebel group, was quoted as telling Indian Express, “Deputy Chief Minister Nashikrao Tirpude, who belonged to Congress (I), openly criticised Chief Minister Patil, Pawar and his mentor Yeshwantrao Chavan. Tirpude was saying things that didn’t go down well with the likes of Pawar and his close aides. Pawar was a minister in the Vasantdada Patil group.” Bhegde added that the anger against the government was brewing for three-four months before Pawar finally took action and toppled it. Lessons for Shinde It appears that Shinde’s revolt is a page out of Pawar’s playbook. Like Pawar, Shinde had been unhappy with the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), which includes Shiv Sena, Congress and Sharad Pawar’s NCP. He had alleged that NCP and Congress wanted to “finish off” Sena and asked Uddhav Thackeray to leave the “unholy” coalition. And with the support of the MLAs growing, he finally made his way to the chief minister’s post. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.