The struggle for supremacy over the hearts and minds of the Shiv Sena cadre was played out in earnest during the rival Dussehra rallies of CM Eknath Shinde and former CM Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday, with Mr. Shinde accusing Mr. Thackeray of forsaking his father, Bal Thackeray’s Hindutva and prostrating himself before the Congress.
Mr. Thackeray, in turn, cornered Mr. Shinde and his tripartite government (Shinde-led Sena, the BJP and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction) over the Maratha reservation issue, likening the police lathi-charge on Maratha quota agitators in Jalna in August to General Dyer’s order to shoot into the crowd at Jallianwala Bagh.
Addressing a packed gathering at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan, Mr. Shinde reiterated his government’s commitment to provide the Maratha community with a foolproof quota that would hold water.
“I will fight for reservation for the Maratha community till my last breath. We will achieve this without hurting the existing quota of other communities. But I fervently appeal to the community’s members not to take any extreme steps and think of the future of their families,” said the CM, accusing the Opposition of attempting to create disorder in the State by pitting Marathas against the OBC communities.
Mr. Thackeray, who managed to hold his rally at Dadar’s iconic Shivaji Park for the second time since the Shiv Sena’s split in June 2022, thanked Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil for leading the reservation protests in a mature manner.
“The protestors who were lathi-charged in Jalna was just how British General Dyer had unleashed the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. The villagers, who were protesting peacefully, were brutally beaten. The Maratha quota issue was also on the boil when I was CM, but that time, there was no police brutality. The police do not act without orders. So, who is the ‘General Dyer’ of Jalna” said Mr. Thackeray, targeting Mr. Shinde.
Mr. Jaranage Patil has vowed to go on an indefinite hunger strike from October 25 onwards as his ‘deadline’ to the Shinde government to grant a quota to the Marathas expired on Tuesday.
He further hit out at the Centre for not resolving the Maratha issue during the special parliament session convened last month.
“If this issue has to be sorted, it has to resolved through the Lok Sabha. We were expecting that a decision will be taken during the special parliamentary session organised last month,” he said.
Also Read | Maratha community lost reservation due to Uddhav Thackeray, says Bawankule
Meanwhile, Mr. Shinde alleged that Mr. Thackeray had had ambitions to be CM since 2004.
“It will not be surprising if Uddhav Thackeray soon merges his faction into the Congress,” Mr. Shinde said.
“Balasaheb Thackeray had given the slogan of ‘Say with pride you are a Hindu’. Today, Uddhav Thackeray’s group is saying ‘’say with pride we are with the Congress.’ You [Uddhav] have deceived the Hindutva ideal and put a dagger into Balasaheb ideals. Tomorrow you could well ally with Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM or hug members of some terror outfit,” Mr. Shinde said, accusing Uddhav Thackeray was ingratiating himself with all those parties that had been rejected by his father Bal Thackeray.
While claiming his government was forging ahead with the ideals of Bal Thackeray and that of Hindutva, Mr. Shinde said his government also respected other religious minorities.
Mr. Shinde accused Mr. Thackeray of reportedly plotting to frame him in a false case.
“However, I toppled him from the CM’s post [in June 2022] before he could take any such step,” said the CM.
Mr. Shinde claimed Mr. Thackeray had no concern for the well-being of the ordinary Shiv Sainik, only for himself and the Thackeray family.
