Sena factions wrangle over deceased Thane leader Anand Dighe

The tug-of-war that took place when Thackeray’s portrait was unveiled in the Maharashtra Vidhan Bhavan was replicated in Thane, with both factions trying to assert their claim over Dighe—who, incidentally, is chief minister Eknath Shinde’s mentor.

Mumbai: After coming to metaphorical blows a few days ago over who had more claim to the legacy of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray, the two factions of the Sena were at it again on Friday, the birth anniversary of Thane Shiv Sena leader Anand Dighe.

For his first visit to Shinde’s stronghold since the split in his party, Thackeray chose the eve of Dighe’s birth anniversary. He inaugurated a medical camp organised by MP Rajan Vichare (who has refused to go with Shinde faction) and garlanded a bust of Dighe. He announced that he would return to address a rally to fight against the Shinde faction, and reiterated his standard criticism of the faction, saying that Shinde and his men had sold themselves for ₹50 crore each. (Praful Gangurde/HT Photo)

The tug-of-war that took place when Thackeray’s portrait was unveiled in the Maharashtra Vidhan Bhavan was replicated in Thane, with both factions trying to assert their claim over Dighe—who, incidentally, is chief minister Eknath Shinde’s mentor. Thus, while Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray visited Thane on Thursday and paid homage to Dighe, the Shinde-led Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena (BSS) put up a show of strength on Friday. A key BSS functionary said this was “necessary” to better Thackeray’s performance.

For his first visit to Shinde’s stronghold since the split in his party, Thackeray chose the eve of Dighe’s birth anniversary. He inaugurated a medical camp organised by MP Rajan Vichare (who has refused to go with Shinde faction) and garlanded a bust of Dighe. He announced that he would return to address a rally to fight against the Shinde faction, and reiterated his standard criticism of the faction, saying that Shinde and his men had sold themselves for ₹50 crore each. “He also wanted to visit Anand Ashram, where Dighe used to stay, but BSS activists opposed it,” said a Sena UBT leader.

Shinde, on his part, spent almost the entire day in his city paying homage to his mentor, attending different functions, and later inspecting the daylighting of the Katai tunnel connecting Thane to other areas. The chief minister also renamed Anand Ashram to ‘Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena–Anand Ashram–Eknath Shinde’.

Thackeray launched an attack on Shinde on the latter’s home turf, declaring that Shinde’s betrayal had defamed the party and Maharashtra. Significantly, he shared the dais with former minister and NCP leader from Thane Jitendra Awhad, an indication of a Shiv Sena-NCP alliance in the forthcoming Thane municipal elections.

The late Dighe was the chief of the Shiv Sena in Thane district and built up the party there. Under him, Thane city became a Shiv Sena bastion. When he died in 2002 in an accident, his angry supporters vandalised the hospital he was being treated at, leading to it being shut down forever.