NCP (SP) leader Eknath Khadse has claimed that Union Home Minister Amit Shah personally invited him to rejoin BJP, but local Maharashtra leaders — widely understood as the Devendra Fadnavis camp — blocked the move, according to Hindustan Times. The claim exposes a deep Delhi-versus-state rift inside BJP's most electorally critical western bastion.

Here is a man who once ran Jalgaon district like a personal fiefdom for the BJP, who delivered booth-level margins that party headquarters in Delhi still studies — and today, the same party apparently cannot agree on whether it wants him back. Eknath Khadse's public claim, reported by Hindustan Times, that Union Home Minister Amit Shah personally asked him to return to the BJP but that local Maharashtra leaders vetoed the move, is not a grievance. It is a grenade, lobbed with the pin already pulled, into the middle of BJP's most important state unit.

The timing is no accident. Maharashtra's local body elections are approaching, and the Mahayuti alliance — BJP, Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, and Ajit Pawar's NCP — needs every seat it can scrape. Khadse knows this. More critically, he knows that Amit Shah knows this.

The Fadnavis-Khadse Fault Line: Older Than Mahayuti

To understand why this claim detonates the way it does, you need the backstory that no press release will give you. Eknath Khadse and Devendra Fadnavis have been on a collision course inside Maharashtra BJP for over a decade. When Fadnavis became Chief Minister in 2014, Khadse — then a powerful minister and a man who considered himself CM-material — felt sidelined. A land deal controversy in 2016, which Khadse has always called a political hit job orchestrated by rivals within his own party, led to his resignation from the state cabinet. He never returned.

The wound festered. By 2020, Khadse crossed over to Sharad Pawar's NCP, a move that stunned the BJP cadre in North Maharashtra where Khadse remains a formidable OBC leader with deep grassroots networks. The party lost not just a leader but an entire ecosystem of local influence in Jalgaon and surrounding districts.

Now, according to Khadse's own account as reported by Hindustan Times, the central leadership — specifically Amit Shah — recognised the electoral hole and extended an olive branch. But the state unit, the Fadnavis machinery, said no. The implication Khadse leaves hanging is unmistakable: Fadnavis would rather lose seats than share power with a rival who once breathed down his neck for the top job.

Political Pulse

The corridors of Mantralaya are buzzing with a question nobody is asking on the record: did Amit Shah actually make the call, or is Khadse strategically invoking Shah's name to maximise damage? In political circles across Vidarbha and North Maharashtra, the consensus — whispered, never printed — is that it does not matter either way. The genius of Khadse's move, say those tracking the Jalgaon strongman, is that the claim is unfalsifiable and devastating regardless. If Shah did invite him, it means Delhi does not trust Fadnavis's electoral arithmetic. If Shah did not, then Khadse has forced Shah into the awkward position of either confirming or denying — and silence from Delhi, which is exactly what has followed so far, reads as confirmation to anyone paying attention.

The talk in NCP (SP) circles, meanwhile, is that Sharad Pawar's camp is quietly delighted. Khadse's statement serves a dual purpose: it keeps him relevant within NCP (SP) as a man the BJP wants back — a trophy defector whose value is proven by the very party that lost him — and it simultaneously destabilises the BJP state unit at precisely the moment it needs cohesion. One veteran NCP (SP) functionary, speaking on background, reportedly described the move as Khadse playing chess while others play carrom.

(This section reflects political corridor chatter and unverified speculation, not confirmed fact.)

Delhi vs the Satraps: A Pattern, Not an Incident

India Herald's read of what is really driving this is structural, not personal. The Khadse episode fits a pattern visible across BJP-governed states in 2026: the central leadership's talent-acquisition instinct running headlong into the territorial insecurities of state-level power brokers. In Karnataka, the Yediyurappa-Vijayendra saga follows a similar grammar — Delhi wants to widen the tent, the local strongman wants to control the guest list. In Rajasthan, the delayed inductions of Jat leaders into the cabinet reflected the same friction between Vasundhara Raje's loyalists and the Shah-Modi recruitment vision.

Maharashtra, however, is the highest-stakes theatre. The state sends 48 Lok Sabha seats and 288 Vidhan Sabha seats. The Mahayuti alliance's 2024 assembly sweep, while impressive, papered over cracks that Khadse is now prising open with a crowbar. The OBC arithmetic in North Maharashtra — where Khadse commands influence among Leva Patils and allied communities — is not something Fadnavis can replicate with organisational machinery alone. Booth management wins elections; community trust wins mandates. Khadse represents the latter, and his absence from the BJP tent is an absence that shows up in the margins.

What Khadse Gains — And What He Risks

The calculation on Khadse's side is shrewd but not without risk. By publicly claiming Shah's endorsement, he elevates his stock within NCP (SP) — he is not just another defector, he is the one BJP's most powerful strategist wanted back. This gives him leverage with Sharad Pawar for a more prominent role, perhaps a Rajya Sabha nomination or a key organisational post in Maharashtra.

But the risk is real. If Amit Shah publicly denies the invitation — something the Home Minister has not done as of this writing — Khadse's credibility takes a hit. More dangerously, if BJP decides to retaliate by activating the dormant land deal cases against him, Khadse could find himself fighting on legal fronts he thought he had left behind. The Enforcement Directorate, never far from the political conversation in Maharashtra, remains a sword that hangs over several leaders who crossed party lines in the 2019-2020 churn.

Khadse's camp has not responded to queries about whether he has documentary or witness proof of Shah's invitation. BJP's Maharashtra unit, according to Hindustan Times, has not issued a formal response either — a silence that, in Indian politics, is louder than most statements.

The Forward View: What to Watch

Three things will determine whether this remains a one-cycle story or becomes a genuine fracture point. First, watch for Amit Shah's next Maharashtra visit — whether he meets Khadse, avoids Jalgaon, or addresses the claim publicly will signal Delhi's real position. Second, watch the local body ticket distribution: if BJP struggles to field credible OBC candidates in North Maharashtra, Khadse's point about his own indispensability will be made for him, silently and electorally. Third, watch Sharad Pawar. The 85-year-old master of the long game did not accept Khadse into NCP (SP) out of charity — he accepted him as a disruption device aimed at BJP's innards. If Pawar elevates Khadse publicly in the coming weeks, it is a signal that NCP (SP) intends to weaponise this fissure through the election cycle.

The larger question Khadse's grenade leaves ticking is one the BJP has never comfortably answered in Maharashtra: who runs the state party — the man in Delhi who wins the national mandate, or the man in Nagpur who delivers the state? As long as that question has two answers, it will keep producing Khadses — leaders who fall through the crack between ambition and authority, and who know exactly how to make the crack visible on their way down.

Key Takeaways

  • Eknath Khadse's claim that Amit Shah invited him to rejoin BJP but local leaders blocked it exposes a deep Delhi-versus-state factional rift inside Maharashtra BJP, according to Hindustan Times.
  • The Fadnavis-Khadse rivalry dates back over a decade, rooted in a CM-aspirant's sidelining and a 2016 land deal controversy that Khadse has called a political hit job by internal rivals.
  • Khadse's move strategically serves dual purposes: it elevates his value within NCP (SP) as a leader BJP wants back, and it destabilises the BJP state unit ahead of Maharashtra local body elections.
  • The pattern of Delhi's recruitment instinct clashing with state-level gatekeepers — visible in Karnataka and Rajasthan — finds its highest-stakes expression in Maharashtra, which sends 48 Lok Sabha and 288 Vidhan Sabha seats.
  • The key signals to watch: Amit Shah's next Maharashtra visit, local body ticket distribution in North Maharashtra's OBC-heavy seats, and whether Sharad Pawar elevates Khadse's profile to weaponise the BJP fissure.

By the Numbers

  • Maharashtra sends 48 Lok Sabha seats and 288 Vidhan Sabha seats, making it BJP's most electorally critical western state.
  • Khadse's 2016 forced resignation from the Maharashtra cabinet and his 2020 defection to NCP represent a decade-long factional wound inside BJP's state unit.

The 5W+H: Who, What, When, Where, Why, How

  • Who: Eknath Khadse, senior NCP (SP) leader and former Maharashtra minister, making the claim; Amit Shah, BJP's central strategist, as the alleged inviter; state-level BJP leaders aligned with CM Devendra Fadnavis as the reported blockers.
  • What: Khadse publicly stated that Amit Shah asked him to rejoin BJP but that local party leaders opposed his return, exposing intra-party factionalism.
  • When: The claim surfaced in June 2026, ahead of crucial Maharashtra local body elections.
  • Where: Maharashtra — the claim pertains to state BJP politics, with the Delhi central leadership on one side and the Mumbai-Nagpur state unit on the other.
  • Why: Khadse attributes the block to long-standing rivalry with the Fadnavis faction within Maharashtra BJP; his statement also serves to position himself strategically within NCP (SP) while unsettling BJP's state unit.
  • How: By publicly naming Amit Shah as the one who extended the invitation, Khadse has forced both the central BJP leadership and the state unit into a corner — either confirm or deny, with each option carrying political cost.

Frequently Asked Questions

What exactly did Eknath Khadse claim about Amit Shah and BJP?

According to Hindustan Times, Khadse publicly stated that Amit Shah personally invited him to rejoin BJP but that local Maharashtra leaders — widely understood as aligned with CM Devendra Fadnavis — opposed and blocked his return.

Why did Khadse leave BJP in the first place?

Khadse resigned from the Maharashtra cabinet in 2016 following a land deal controversy he has consistently called a politically motivated hit job by rivals within his own party. He formally joined Sharad Pawar's NCP in 2020.

How does this affect Maharashtra BJP ahead of elections?

The claim exposes a Delhi-versus-state rift that could complicate ticket distribution and OBC outreach in North Maharashtra, where Khadse retains significant grassroots influence among Leva Patil and allied communities.

Has BJP or Amit Shah responded to Khadse's claim?

As of this report, neither Amit Shah nor BJP's Maharashtra unit has issued a formal public response to Khadse's claim, according to Hindustan Times — a silence that political observers note is itself being read as significant.

For more interesting updates wa click and follow Indiaherald WhatsApp channel

Find out more:

Eknath Khadse BJP NCP SP Mahayuti Maharashtra local body elections OBC politics

Srivastan Venkatraman

13/07/2026 08:59 AM