India, April 30 -- Shiv Sena (UBT) chief and former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray will not seek re-election to the state legislative council during the upcoming biennial poll. Instead, in a surprise move on Wednesday, Thackeray fielded senior party leader Ambadas Danve for the election.

The move has blindsided the Congress, the Sena (UBT)'s ally in the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition. The Congress had offered conditional support, saying it would not field a candidate of its own provided the Sena (UBT) fielded Thackeray for the lone seat the opposition will be contesting.

Betrayed at not being consulted on the move, the Congress now says it will announce its own candidate for the election, even though Danve's victory is a ...