Shiv Sena wasted 25 years in alliance with BJP: Uddhav Thackeray

Uddhav Thackeray said, We did not leave Hindutva and will never do so. We left BJP and not Hindutva. BJP is not synonymous with Hindutva

MUMBAI: Shiv Sena wasted 25 years in its alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), said Uddhav Thackeray in a virtual address to party workers on Sunday, the 96th birth anniversary of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray. It was also Thackeray’s first address to his party ahead of the forthcoming statewide municipal elections.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray with his son and State Environment Minister Aaditya Thackeray pays homage to the Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on their birth anniversaries, at their residence, in Mumbai on Sunday. (ANI)

“I reiterate that we wasted 25 years (of the party) in the alliance (with the BJP),” he said. He attacked the BJP – with whom the Sena first came together in 1994 – saying it used its local partners for politics and “threw them out at their convenience.” He said BJP’s Hindutva is “nothing but a charade for power.” He termed BJP’s idea of Hindutva as “hollow.”

“It is unfortunate that we nurtured them for 25 years... We did not leave Hindutva and will never do so. We left BJP and not Hindutva. BJP is not synonymous with Hindutva... We wanted power to promote Hindutva. We did not use Hindutva to get power.”

Challenging the BJP to not use central agencies against Shiv Sena and political opponents in Maharashtra, Thackeray said. “[Union Home Minister] Amit Shah came to Pune and challenged us to contest alone. We have accepted that challenge in our Dussehra rally. But while fighting, you must not use your power. We too will not use our power as a ruling party in the state. If you have the courage, contest on the strength of your workers. Merely challenging us and putting ED (Enforcement Directorate) and other agencies is not courage.”

Thackeray meanwhile told party leaders and workers to contest elections all the way from the gram panchayat level and district cooperative banks to Lok Sabha. Thackeray also directed party leaders to build cooperative institutions at the village level to build the party’s base just as the its alliance partners Congress and NCP have.

Thackeray’s statements on elections came a few days after the results of Nagar Panchayat polls were declared, where Sena came fourth among all the state’s major political parties, including the BJP, NCP and Congress. The Sena chief remarked that party leaders and workers do not contest local polls with the same intensity as they fight Lok Sabha or Assembly polls. “We do not contest the smaller elections as other parties do,” he said. “I am responsible for this, but we should not let this happen again.” He said though the party came fourth in the recent elections, it won its biggest tally, “higher than when we were in an alliance with BJP.”

To be sure, Shiv Sena is largely regarded as an urban party. Therefore, in a bid to build its rural presence, the Sena chief said they must focus on building institutions. “Our opponents or allies have built institutions at the village level. What are we doing in the cooperative sector? How many institutions have we founded,” he remarked.

The Sena boss added that the party must build its presence in other states and create a “wave” to “capture” Delhi, which, he said, was Sena founder Bal Thackeray’s dream.

Thackeray used the occasion to clarify about this health and his extended absence from key official meetings which came under criticism from the BJP. “The past few months were spent in recovery after my surgery. I am still undergoing physiotherapy. But soon, I will step out and tour Maharashtra. I will show the power of saffron to our opponents who are worried about my health. Like they say there is a caretaker government, they are a caretaker opposition, and they will self-destruct; we need not worry about them,” he said.

Thackeray slammed the BJP stating that its Hindutva changed “as per the party’s convenience,” and that “the BJP killed democracy to gain power.”

He said, “Our Hindutva does not change as per convenience. If you have the courage, then have one standard from Kashmir to Kanyakumari... What we did was in broad daylight, not before sunrise. We took oath at ShivTeerth in front of everybody. At many places, you topple governments, indulge in horsetrading to install your government. Do you consider this democracy?”

Political observers said Thackeray may have successfully used the occasion to send out a strong message about his health and his capacity to govern the state and lead the party. Hemant Desai, a Mumbai based political analyst said, “Besides taking on the BJP strongly, Thackeray’s appearance on Sunday will help boosting his party’s morale after the concern over his health. Political corridors were abuzz with his alternatives, but he clarified that he will soon begin touring Maharashtra. I think the speech will encourage Shiv Sena’s rank and file.”

Another political commentator Prakash Akolkar said, “Thackeray has dared the BJP on the eve of the local body elections, especially the corporation elections in Mumbai and Pune. By challenging the BJP to not use the central agencies, he has tried to send out a message that the ruling party at the Centre uses sneaky means to gain power. He also attacked the BJP saying it is their policy to use and throw the local partners. His public appearance after two months in a cheerful avatar will help in galvanising party workers.”