Amid strained relations between warring allies BJP and Shiv Sena, BJP chief Amit Shah had an unexpectedly long meeting with Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray, lasting nearly two-and-a-half hours, at the Thackeray residence, Matoshree, in Bandra (East) on Wednesday. Shah, along with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, reached Matoshree around 7.45 pm and left at 10.05 pm. Read | Sampark for Samarthan: BJP president meets Madhuri, Ratan Tata Sources said Uddhav, along with his son and Sena leader Aaditya, welcomed Shah and Fadnavis. Initially, all the four held formal discussions and then Uddhav and Shah had a closed-door meeting that lasted over an hour, said a source. Neither Sena nor BJP leaders confirmed the details of what was discussed at the meeting. Sources said the BJP reiterated its stand that a Sena-BJP alliance would help both parties in the 2019 polls. The meeting is seen to be significant as the BJP and the Sena have been bickering despite being allies at the Central and State level. The two allies contested the May 28 bypoll to the Palghar Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra separately and engaged in a bitter campaign against each other.
