Opinion | The Pawars Are Talking Again, And So Are Thackerays. Here's Why |
Maharashtra's political landscape is witnessing unprecedented realignments as the state prepares for municipal corporation elections across 29 bodies, a poll that comes four years behind schedule.
The most significant of these changes involves the coming together of estranged Thackeray cousins and tentative steps toward reconciliation between the rival Pawar factions.
In a development that few saw coming, Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) has broken away from the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance to join hands with cousin Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena for the elections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
This partnership represents more than mere electoral convenience; it is a strategic attempt by both cousins to reclaim the legacy of the legendary Balasaheb Thackeray, whose towering personality once dominated Maharashtra politics.
The alliance is built on carefully calculated electoral arithmetic. Together, the Thackerays are wooing the Marathi Manoos, who constitute approximately 40% of Mumbai's population, while also banking on support from the Muslim community, which makes up about 20%.
The reasoning behind this strategy is straightforward: the united Thackeray front believes it is better positioned to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party than the Congress, hence leaving no option for the Muslim community but to back them.
The seat-sharing arrangement reflects the relative strengths of the partners. Shiv Sena (UBT) will contest 165 seats, MNS will field candidates in 52 constituencies, while the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar faction) will contest just 10 seats as part of this new coalition.
At a joint press conference announcing the tie-up, the Thackeray brothers invoked a potent warning to the Marathi Manoos: "batenge to katenge" - divided we fall, united we stand, taking cue from the BJP's slogan in the 2024 state elections.
For Uddhav Thackeray, these municipal elections represent nothing short of an existential battle. Shiv Sena held sway over the Brihanmumbai Municipal........