After the Rashtriya Janata Dal and Samajwadi Party (SP), the Shiv Sena on Thursday extended its support to TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, and said it would not contest Assembly elections in West Bengal.
Hailing Banerjee as the "real Bengal tigress", the party, which had earlier said that it would join the electoral battle in the state, vowed to "stand in solidarity" with the TMC camp.
Senior Shiv Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut, in a tweet, made the announcement and said that the decision was taken following discussions with party president and Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
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Raut took to Twitter and said "at the moment, it appears to be a Didi vs All fight".
"A lot of people are curious to know whether Shiv Sena is contesting West Bengal Polls or not? So here's the update after discussions with Party President Uddhav ji Thackeray. All 'M's - Money, Muscle and Media are being used against 'M'amata Didi. Hence, Shiv Sena has decided not to Contest West Bengal polls & stand in solidarity with her. We wish Mamata Didi a 'roaring' success, 'cos we believe She is the real Bengal Tigress," he added.
