Munde said he had told the party leadership that all organisational decisions should be taken in a democratic manner. “But there was no response to my suggestions. In the last two to four years, the party has not taken up a single programme to fight for the common man.”

Questioning the claim of consensus decision, Munde pointed out: “When Pandurang Phundkar was made the state president, the majority wanted me. But the majority viewpoint was not considered.”

He said the three-member committee to decide on appointing the new Mumbai BJP president was not set up on his demand, but that of the state president. “I was informed about the committee. I did not object, but it is not necessary that I will accept the decision of the committee,” he said.

He denied had fallen out with the RSS which led to his being sidelined in BJP’s organisational affairs. He said he was also an RSS swayamsevak. “Earlier the Jan Sangh was a small cadre-based party, and I am part of those people who transformed it into a mass-based one,” he said, adding he had given the party a “Bahujan face” and not just an “OBC one”.

Poonam Mahajan, daughter of Munde’s late brother-in-law Pramod Mahajan, told The Indian Express: “We need Mundeji to lead the BJP in the state. We will be able to persuade him.”