Eknath Shinde reprimands rebel MLAs over their dance at Goa hotel

Panaji, July 01: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has expressed his displeasure over the way a section of MLAs from his group danced in Goa following the announcement of his name for the top post.

On Thursday, the rebel Shiv Sena MLAs broke into a dance in the lobby of a luxury hotel in Goa, where they are currently staying, when they heard that Shinde was going to be the next chief minister of Maharashtra. A video showing the rebel MLAs dancing to the tune of Marathi songs went viral. However, several netizens slammed them for the way they danced, terming the act as indecent.

While Shinde took oath as the chief minister, senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis was sworn-in as his deputy. After the swearing-in ceremony held in Mumbai, Shinde returned to the hotel at Dona Paula near here in the wee hours of Friday.

On his return, Shinde expressed his displeasure over their dance and objected to it.

Talking to reporters, rebel Sena MLA Deepak Kesarkar, who is the spokesperson of the Shinde camp, said, "With a large heart, we admit that it was a mistake to dance that way. It does not look good for the MLAs, who have been elected by the people and who are aiming to work for the betterment of Maharashtra."

During his address to the MLAs at the hotel, Shinde took a strong objection to their dance and asked them to ensure that such things do not happen in future, he added.

Kesarkar said, "Such mistakes do happen in the moments of happiness, but ideally they should not happen." He said the rebel MLAs have joined hands with the BJP for betterment of Maharashtra.