Ask a Shiv Sainik and they will tell you – on Dussehra, all roads lead to Shivaji Park, which has been synonymous with Shiv Sena rallies since 1966.
Cut to 2022 and things have changed rapidly. For starters, the Shiv Sena faced a vertical split in June, with Eknath Shinde forming an alliance with the BJP and vying to become the chief minister, claiming that his faction is the ‘real’ Shiv Sena.
The tussle between the Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray camp meant that Mumbai witnessed parallel Dussehra rallies on Wednesday, a first in its own right. After a mini court fight, Uddhav Thackeray took to Shivaji Park in Dadar, while CM Shinde took center stage at BKC’s MMRDA ground, about 8 kms away.
So where did Thackeray go wrong? Vinod Kumar Bhojwani, a Shiv Sena worker from Sillod in Aurangabad for the past 25 years, said: “Hindu Hriday Samrat Balasaheb Thackeray was clear that we will not go with the Congress. [By allying with the Congress] This is the mistake that the Shiv Sena President committed.
Similar to Shinde, Bhojwani said the Dussehra rally by the chief minister was to set the course for the next assembly elections in Maharashtra, scheduled for 2024.
who said what
On expected lines, Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray took a dig at each other in the light of the former’s rebellion.
“Those to whom we gave everything betrayed us and those who were given nothing are all together. This army is not of one or two but of all of you. As long as you are with me, I will be the leader of the party.
Shinde retorts: “Maharashtra voters chose you” [Uddhav] And BJP in the assembly elections, but you cheated the people by tying up with Congress and NCP. The true legacy of Balasaheb is the legacy of ideology. Our ideology will not change. Betrayal has happened but it happened in 2019.” The Chief Minister also emphasized that his rebellion was a ‘revolution’.
Thackeray clan split?
Besides being a platform for the two camps to trade barbs, the rallies also exposed flaws in Thackeray’s armor. When Uddhav Thackeray and his son Aaditya were at the party’s traditional rally venue, his brother Jaydev and his ex-wife Smita as well as the late Bindumadhav’s son Nihar promised support to Shinde.
“Eknath (Shinde) is my favourite. Maharashtra needs a bright leader like him. I have come here for him. Don’t leave Eknath Shinde alone. He is working for farmers and common people.
Hindutva game: Benefit for BJP?
A major cause of contention between the two sides was party supremo Balasaheb and his Hindutva ideology – an issue which The focus of his teaser online In preparation for the rallies.
Analysts say, however, Shiv Sena’s Over time the concept of its ideology has changed.
“Uddhav Thackeray’s Hindutva is more about creating, assimilating and accepting different identities rather than claiming as a Hindu. His (idea of Hindutva) is very different from that of Bal Thackeray. He was talking of more firmly positioning the Hindu identity in various forms,” said Dr Kunwar Siddhartha Dadhwal, a professor of political science who has studied the Shiv Sena over the years.
A vertical split in the party and a possible vote split is expected to result in gains for the BJP – the largest party in the assembly.
Dadhwal said: “What the BJP has been able to do, I would say, is killing regional politics in Maharashtra. The NCP is anyway struggling to find its identity and existence with corruption cases against Pawar, Nawab Malik and Anil Deshmukh.
Leaders of both the camps reassured about the show of their strength in the rallies. Now, all eyes will be on his performance in the upcoming Andheri East by-elections.
“The fight is not about the Dussehra rally. It is about the bow and arrow symbol,” said a supporter of Shinde, who did not wish to be named, about the pending case Election commission.
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