"Kahihi zhala tari me Shiv Senechi Congress hou denaar nahi" (No matter what, I will not let my Shiv Sena turn into the Congress party) — This famous quote of late Sena patriarch Bal Thackeray, along with his picture, stood tall on a poster erected on the right side of the stage at MMRDA grounds in Mumbai's Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) — the venue for Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde's Dussehra rally on Wednesday, 5 October.
Meanwhile, another stage was set at Dadar's Shivaji Park for Uddhav Thackeray, with a similar poster next to the stage that read: "Me majhya Shiv Senela BJP cha ghulam hou denar nahi" (No matter what, I will not let my Shiv Sena become a slave of the BJP).
For the first time in the 56 years, the Shiv Sena's annual 'Dasra Melava' took place at two separate venues and were addressed by two different leaders — one by Uddhav at Shivaji Park and another by Shinde at BKC — both embroiled in a bitter war for the Sena supremo's legacy following the biggest ever split in the party in June this year.
The annual rally commands Bal Thackeray's legacy. Be it declaring Uddhav as his heir or Aditya's launch - every major event and announcement by the party has taken place at the 'Dasra Melava' of the Shiv Sena.
Chants of "Uddhav Thackeray aage badho" and "Shinde Sena ka ek hi Sher..." echoed at the respective venues. Both Uddhav and Shinde used the word gaddar (traitor) abundantly in their speeches for the other faction, while each faction claimed to be khuddar (honest).
Wednesday's events saw both sides leaving no stones unturned to portray themselves as the "real Shiv Sena" and the "true successors" to Bal Thackeray's legacy and his Hindutva ideology.
3 Thackerays on Stage, Smartly Edited Videos: Shinde Aces the Optics
The massive stage at BKC donned pictures of Bal Thackeray and late Sena leader Anand Dighe, one of the staunch Hindutva leaders of the party who Shinde considers his guru. In the middle was the face of the roaring tiger, a symbol associated with the Shiv Sena for decades.
At the centre of the stage was an empty, sliver-plated chair with a saffron shawl and a garland dedicated to Bal Thackeray which stood out from all other chairs.
A five-minute song that featured Bal Thackeray's speeches and interviews of him slamming the Congress and the NCP was played several times. Marathi playback singers Avdhoot Gupte and Swapnil Bandodkar sang the party's signature song, the same song that also played on loop at Shivaji park ahead of Uddhav's address.
For the shastra pooja, a 51-feet-long sword with the word 'Chhatrapati' engraved on it was placed at the venue. A silver replica of the bow and arrow symbol of the party was also kept by the stage.
However, Shinde aced the optics game not just logistically, but also emotionally, considering the line-up on stage that included three Thackerays.
To everyone's surprise, Bal Thackeray son Jaidev Thackeray arrived on stage soon after Shinde reached the venue and even addressed the gathering. "For days, many have been asking me if I have joined the Shinde faction. A Thackeray does not join any camp. Decisions made by Shinde were good, that's why I am here," he said.
The other Thackeray on stage was Jaidev's ex-wife Smita Thackeray, once considered to be a close confidante of Bal Thackeray. While being separated from Jaidev since the 1990s, Smita continued to live at Matoshree and commanded significant clout in the party, till she got sidelined along with Uddhav's rise.
The third Thackeray on stage was Nihar, son of Bal Thackeray's eldest son Bindumadhav who died in 1996. A Mumbai-based advocate, Nihar has links with the BJP via his wife Ankita who is the daughter of BJP leader Harshvardhan Patil.
Another person who shared the stage with Shinde was Champa Singh Thapa, who was Bal Thackeray's caretaker, aide, and assistant for 27 years until his death in 2012.
Anand Dighe's sister Aruna Gadkari was also present on stage and was one of the first ones to felicitate Shinde after he arrived.
All the three Thackerays present on stage, Thapa and Gadkari have no significant political clout, and the relationships of Smita and Jaidev with Uddhav's family being rocky is public knowledge. But them sharing the stage with Shinde was a calculated move to portray that all those from the Thackeray family and Bal Thackeray's aides, who were allegedly side-lined by Uddhav, are now by Shinde's side.
Other than the stalwarts, the outpour at Shinde's rally was massive. Sources in the party say that each MLA and MP was tasked to bring in at least 5,000 supporters to Mumbai from their respective constituencies. With thousands of personnel of Maharashtra police deployed at both venues, camps of food and water for thousands were set up at various locations in the city for the past two days.
Dhananjay Shinde from Solapur arrived in Mumbai for Shinde's rally in Mumbai at 7:00 am with approximately 2,000 supporters in 200 vehicles. Previously a Thackeray supporter, Dhananjay said that he never agreed to the coalition with the NCP.
"When Uddhav was at the helm, our leaders never got the respect that they deserved. How do we have any expectations from him then? If 1.5 lakh people from our constituency ensured our MLA's victory and he is not able to get any work done, how will the common man's work get done? Shinde's leadership has emerged from within the poor, he will understand our struggles," Dhananjay said.
"He is a common man who became the chief minister, so we expect him to understand the struggles of the poor and the downtrodden," he added.
Shiv Sena worker Suresh Bilare from Navi Mumbai said that he has been attending the Shiv Sena rally from Navi Mumbai for years. "The Dasra Melava at Shivaji Park is of the Maha Vikas Aghadi, here it's of the Shiv Sena, that is why we are here. Shinde has done a lot for the poor, especially since he came to power. We can now celebrate all festivals as we wish. We danced in Navratri till 12:00 am," he said.
"We were upset with Uddhav ever since he allied with the NCP. Balasaheb was our God and he never came close to joining hands with the Congress and the NCP all his life. Sharad Pawar always wanted to split the Shiv Sena and the BJP. The NCP and Sanjay Raut always wanted to break the Shiv Sena. They have been successful in doing so, as you can see," he added.
Many supporters expressed confidence that Shinde will win the bow and arrow symbol of the party, but also said that they will support him irrespective of the Election Commission's decision.
Uddhav's Rally Runs High on Emotions
Unlike Shinde's rally, Uddhav's rally had lesser 'crowd-pullers', but the rally was equally packed with Thackeray loyalists. The narrative being spun at Shivaji Park was clear — the crowd at BKC was paid and brought to show strength, while those at Shivaji Park came out of their love and support for Uddhav.
The backdrop of the stage said: "Eknishtha (devoted) Dasra Melava."
While Uddhav first paid tribute at the Bal Thackeray memorial at another corner of Shivaji Park, there was a beeline of leaders who addressed the gathering ahead of his arrival. MLA Nitin Deshmukh, who had alleged 'kidnapping' attempts by Shinde camp during the split also addressed the gathering. Uddhav's son and former minister Aditya Thackeray was also present on stage.
Muktaji Barkade, a farmer from Maharashtra's Ahmednagar district, walked for nine days to Mumbai along with his fellow Thackeray supporters and friends. Many of them broke their footwear on the way and had bruises on the feet. "This is called dedication," he said.
"We began walking on the first day of Navratri. We came here to tell Uddhav saheb that we are with him, we won't let him lose hope," one of them said.
"What we feel bad about is that Bal Thackeray gave all those people a lot, he made MPs, MLAs, and ministers out of them (Shinde supporters). But when Balasaheb's son became the chief minister, they did not let him rule over two-and-a-half years. We won't rest till we teach them a lesson," he said.
Mangala Sule from Dombivali had come Shivaji Park along with some 1,000 supporters.
"We are the real Shiv Sainiks. We are capable of facing any challenges. I can assure you, we will see Uddhav Thackeray as the chief minister again. All the people you can see here today are the real Shiv Sainiks, all those who came walking for Uddhav Thackeray from other cities are the true Shiv Sainiks. We haven't been paid to come here. We paid for our own tickets and we came," she said, as she and her fellow supporters flashed their local train tickets.
Many of the women she came with said that even if the election commission does not grant the party symbol to Thackeray, they will remain loyal to him.
Another supporter said that the Shinde camp had no right to use Bal Thackeray's name and photo. "They are traitors, I request Shinde to use his father's photo to ask for votes, not that of Uddhav ji's father," he said.
The rallies on Wednesday were expected to indicate the strengths of each of the camps, and possibly suggest which one of them would eventually inherit the party name and symbol.
The Election Commission, under the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968, Paragraph 15, will primarily look at the majority that each of the factions enjoy, and will take into consideration the registered party members and office bearers that each faction has.
The Shinde faction has the support of majority of the MPs and MLAs, but if the turnout at both rallies is any indication, the EC will have a tough time deciding on which of the factions enjoys the maximum support t get the bow and arrow symbol.
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