Thackeray cousins’ poll campaigns move into high gear

While Aaditya, son of Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, is the sitting MLA from Worli, cousin Amit, son of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, is making his poll debut from Mahim

MUMBAI: The election campaigns of the Thackeray cousins are moving into high gear as the state counts down to polling day on November 20. Contesting from adjacent constituencies are Aaditya and Amit Thackeray. While Aaditya, son of Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, is the sitting MLA from Worli, cousin Amit, son of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, is making his poll debut from Mahim.

Thackeray cousins’ poll campaigns move into high gear

In Worli, where Aaditya will be taking on Milind Deora of the Shiv Sena, the Sena (UBT) has asked its leader Anil Parab to oversee the election campaign. Aaditya is a former minister and can hold his own but there is an undercurrent of nervousness in the party. A Sena (UBT) insider pointed out that Aaditya won the Worli seat in 2019 with a margin of over 70,000 votes, but Arvind Sawant, the Sena (UBT) MP from Mumbai South, won the Worli segment in the recent parliamentary elections by just 6,000 votes.

Parab is sure of a win for Aaditya; his mandate is to make sure of a convincing margin. “I spend some time every day in the Worli Naka shakha,’’ he said. Making the contest here a three-cornered fight is the MNS candidate, Sandeep Deshpande.

The Sena (UBT) had asked MLCs Sunil Shinde and Sachin Ahir, both former MLAs from Worli, to camp in the constituency and take charge of Aaditya’s campaign. However, Ahir was dispatched to Pune and the party felt that Sunil Shinde could use some help. After all, the Deora camp is being helmed by Shrikant Shinde, son of chief minister Eknath Shinde.

Also, turning up the heat for the Sena on Saturday was the chief minister’s daughter-in-law Vrushali, who held a roadshow along with Deora’s wife, Pooja. In addition, Eknath Shinde will address at least two meetings in Worli.

Meanwhile, in Mahim, Amit Thackeray is locked in a triangular contest, with Shiv Sena sitting MLA Sada Sarvankar and Sena (UBT) vibhag pramukh Mahesh Sawant. The MNS was to organise a grand meeting on Sunday but permissions were granted at the last moment and the meet was called off. Now Raj Thackeray will personally tour all the MNS shakhas in the Mahim constituency to rally ground support and to organsise informal meetings before November 20.

Senior MNS leader Yashwant Killedar alleged that the government had deliberately delayed granting permission for the MNS’s proposed rally on Sunday. “We’ve done plenty of door-to-door campaigning and it will help us a lot,” he said.

Killedar added, “In the last assembly elections in Mahim, MNS candidate Sandeep Deshpande polled 42,000 votes and Sada Sarvankar, the (undivided) Sena candidate won 61,000 votes. We have over 40,000 votes of the MNS. This time, the rest of the votes will be divided between Sarvankar and Sawant (of the two Sena factions), and Amit Thackeray will win.’’