Shiv Sena's Chief Minister in 2009: Uddhav

Mumbai, July 26: Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray has said his party has now focussed attention on one and only one target, that of unfurling the Saffron flag in the Vidhan Bhavan after the 2009 assembly elections with the party's Chief Minister in office. ''We do not want to come into power for the purpose of installing some one else as the Chief Minister,'' Mr Thackeray today said in the concluding part of his interview to the Sena mouthpiece 'Saamna.' Incidentally, Mr Thackeray is celebrating his birthday tomorrow.

''The Chief Minister will be decided by the Shiv Sena supremo,'' he added.

Mr Thackeray's statement assumes significance as Maharashtra BJP president Nitin Gadkari had a fortnight ago said that in 2009, BJP leader Gopinath Munde will be the Chief Ministerial candidate.

After bickerings in the relationship between Shiv Sena and the BJP over support to Ms Pratibha Patil in the Presidential election, both Mr Munde and Mr Gadkari had stressed that the BJP would contest all 288 assembly seats in the state in the next elections.

UNI