Uddhav Thackeray to take the battle into Shinde’s stronghold

Uddhav Thackeray has decided to take on the lion in its den

Uddhav Thackeray has decided to take on the lion in its den. Holding out a direct challenge to chief minister and party rebel Eknath Shinde, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) president will hold a public meeting in Thane considered to be Shinde’s stronghold. This will be Thackeray’s first visit to Thane after Shinde pulled down his Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition in June.

Mumbai, Oct 20 (ANI): Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) chief Uddhav Thackeray speaks at the party joining ceremony of former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Sanjay Deshmukh, at Shiv Sena Bhavan, Dadar, in Mumbai on Thursday. (ANI Photo) (Sandeep Mahankal)

Earlier, his wife Rashmi and son and Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray have visited the city. Thackeray also blamed Shinde for Election Commission of India’s decision to freeze Shiv Sena’s name and election symbol.

Thackeray, who spoke on Thursday after inducting former minister Sanjay Deshmukh and Congress leader from Thane Sanjay Ghadigaonkar into the party, said he would visit Thane for a rally. “You can decide on a public meeting in Thane and take it for granted that I will attend it,” he added.

Thane holds a special place of pride for the Shiv Sena as it was here that the party first came to power in the local municipal body in 1967, which was a year after its launch. Sena’s Vasantrao Marathe was the municipal chief of the town. It was Thane district that gave the Shiv Sena some of its first-generation frontline leaders like Anand Dighe, Satish Pradhan and Shabir Shaikh.

“They (the Shinde- Devendra Fadnavis government) are trying to postpone the local body elections as they feel this will help them wipe out memories of the work done by us from the minds of the people. However, public memory and the stigma of being traitors can never be wiped out,” he charged.

Without naming Shinde, Thackeray also attacked him for ECI’s decision to freeze the original name of ‘Shiv Sena’ and its ‘bow-and-arrow’ symbol using the pretext of the Andheri East by-election. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is Shinde’s ally, had decided to contest the bypoll, but withdrew its nominee Murji Patel, thus giving the Sena’s Rutuja Latke a virtual walk-over.

Thackeray said he would also conduct a public meeting in Pohradevi in Washim district, which is a shrine revered by members of the Banjara community. Deshmukh, who is a former Shiv Sainik, was elected to the state legislative assembly twice (1999 and 2004) from Digras in Yavatmal district as an independent. A traditional opponent of Sanjay Rathod, the incumbent Food and Drug Administration (FDA) minister and a Banjara leader, Deshmukh had secured over 73,000 votes against him despite contesting as an independent.

The forest minister in the Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA coalition, Rathod had quit in February 2021 after the death by suicide of a 22-year-old TikTok star. The induction of Sunil Maharaj, the mahant of the Pohradevi temple, which is revered as the ‘Kashi of the Banjara community,’ and Deshmukh is an attempt to corner Rathod.

“Those who are out to finish off the Shiv Sena are not aware that when someone tries to inflict a blow on the Shiv Sena, it emerges stronger not tens but hundreds of times over,” said Thackeray.