Thackerays to announce alliance this week, Congress to go solo

Leaders from both parties – the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) – met twice on Tuesday to lock details of the alliance

MUMBAI: A day after the civic election schedule was announced by the State Election Commission (SEC), Thackeray cousins, Uddhav and Raj, fast-tracked their efforts to finalise their electoral alliance. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut said on Tuesday that the alliance is expected to be announced within a week.

Thackerays to announce alliance this week, Congress to go solo

Leaders from both parties – the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) – met twice on Tuesday to lock details of the alliance. They have decided not to engage with the Congress, which will be going solo in the polls. The Congress has said, in no uncertain terms, that it doesn’t want to team up with the MNS due to its violent agitations against North Indian “migrants” in the past.

After the drubbing they received in the assembly elections last year, the Thackeray cousins set aside their differences and decided to join hands for the civic elections. Winning the Mumbai civic body is crucial for the survival of both parties as the metropolis has always been their base. They have already announced their intention to make “safeguarding the interests of the Marathi manoos” their poll plank.

Over the last two months, Uddhav and Raj Thackeray met several times. A senior Sena (UBT) leader said the two leaders want to sort out every detail of their seat-sharing pact before announcing their tie-up. “Both of them wanted to completely work out the seat-sharing before announcing the alliance. They do not want any bickering between the two sides once the tie-up is formally announced,” the leader revealed. “There have also been detailed discussions on campaign strategy, which will pivot on the Marathi manoos.”

Raut and senior Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Anil Parab called on Raj Thackeray at the latter’s Shivaji Park residence on Tuesday, following which leaders from both camps met. “A decision on when to announce (the alliance) will be taken by the two leaders (Uddhav and Raj),” said Parab after the meeting.

Senior MNS leader Bala Nandgaonkar added: “I think the formal announcement will be made in a couple of days.”

On the decision to contest separately from the Congress, Raut said, “I don’t see the Congress being part of our alliance. I think their confidence has grown after the Bihar assembly results.”

City Congress chief Varsha Gaikwad confirmed that the party will not forge any alliance with the Thackerays. “Our party will contest the elections on its own,” she said. The Congress doesn’t want to alienate North Indian voters by partnering with Raj Thackeray as his party has in the past staged violent protests against North Indian migrants.

Congress general secretary Sachin Sawant added, “We want to fight on ideology. There should be no scope for a contest over region, language and caste.”