MNS chief's visit to BJP office raises eyebrows

Eyebrows were raised on Monday in political circles after the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray visited the Bharatiya Janata Party office in Mumbai and met the party's Maharashtra President Sudhir Mungantiwar.

After inaugurating a party office in LIC building, Raj, the estranged nephew of Sena chief Bal Thackeray, went to the BJP office located nearby, taking everyone by surprise. He was welcomed by Mungantiwar and other BJP leaders including Vinod Tawade, Madhu Chavan and Madhav Bhandari. The informal meeting went on for about 20 minutes which is considered significant in the political circles given that the civic polls in the metropolis are due in early 2012.

Speaking to media about Raj's unplanned visit, Mungantiwar said, "It was not a political meet but an informal one. Raj came as a guest and we just had tea."

During the last assembly polls, Mungantiwar had called Raj 'a test tube baby of Nationalist Congress Party leader Sharad Pawar' for eating into the BJP votes. Replying to a query in connection with his remarks, Mungantiwar said he still held the same view.

When asked as to how the BJP would explain to Sena about the meeting with the MNS chief who is like an enemy for their ally, Mungantiwar said, "He is not their enemy, he is Uddhav Thackeray's brother."

The visit by Raj also evoked interest as it came in the backdrop of Shiv Sena and MNS activists coming face to face at the LIC office nearby creating tension for a brief period.