Aaditya leads fightback against Shinde faction

Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray has taken an aggressive stance on issues in Mumbai, highlighting delays in road works, air pollution, and alleged irregularities in street furniture work. He has also written to the Governor, urging him to ask Chief Minister Eknath Shinde to perform his "basic duty of governance." Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders say Thackeray's attacks are part of the party's strategy to target the government and the administrator-led civic body over issues that concern the people.

Mumbai: More than a dozen leaders of Shiv Sena’s Thackeray faction who were corporators in the dissolved Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) have switched sides in recent months and joined the party faction led by chief minister Eknath Shinde. Shinde’s colleagues have also been trying to end or minimise their rival (UBT) faction’s influence in various sectors such as trade unions. Amid such circumstances, the responsibility of heading the Thackeray faction’s fightback in the city, where it has not seen much defections, has fallen on 33-year-old Aaditya Thackeray, who has adopted an aggressive stand over issues that could click with the people.

HT Image

In recent weeks, the Thackeray scion has highlighted how contractors who were assigned ₹6,000 crore road works have not begun the work despite the passage of more than a year. He has spoken out against air pollution in the city, objected to contractors being given advance payments and pointed out alleged irregularities in street furniture work worth ₹263 crore, forcing the administration to launch a probe.

He has also asked why Diwali bonus was denied to employees of the BMC as well as the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport, prompting Shinde to hold a meeting and declare the same.

On Friday, he wrote to Governor Ramesh Bais, urging him to ask the chief minister to perform his ‘basic duty of governance’.

“While our cities today have no elected representatives and are being run by administrators, the absolute incapability of CM to run an administration is seen in the fact that even cities like Mumbai that are directly being run and run down through his office, don’t have enough local administrators. Out of 24 municipal wards, almost 11 have no assistant commissioners (ward officers). Many departments of the BMC have ad hoc postings. This is the case with Mumbai and there would be many such cities across Maharashtra,” he wrote to Bais.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders said Aaditya Thackeray’s attacks on Shinde and the government led by him were part of the party’s strategy.

“It has been decided that Aaditya will not get involved in political mud-slinging and instead would target the government and the administrator-led civic body over issues that concern the people. That’s why he has been talking about road works which is in shambles or trouble with civic administration in the absence of elected representatives. Shinde being in charge of urban development department can be held directly responsible if there is a mess in Mumbai and his party then finds it difficult to defend him,” said a senior Thackeray faction functionary.

State coordinator and spokesman of the Shinde faction, Naresh Mhaske said, “The fact is, Aaditya Thackeray cannot get the contracts and contractors out of his head even after losing power. Chief Minister Shinde has been doing a commendable job and Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders have no reason to criticise him. As such, they are resorting to such tactics to defame him.”

Mhaske, a close aide of Shinde, claimed the previous government was unable to complete any projects, which were now being taken up by the Shinde government.

“Let the government and civic authorities do their job. What is the point of resorting to cheap publicity by inaugurating an incomplete lane of a bridge,” he asked.