A Thackeray Face-Off Over Nominated BMC Members? Big Buzz After Reunion

Less than two months after their reunion ahead of the Mumbai civic polls, Thackeray cousins Uddhav and Raj are locked in a face-off over nominated corporators in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, sources have said.

Leaders of the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena have posted cryptic messages such as, "Why bother with love when the heart isn't in it?" The Uddhav Thackeray camp has downplayed the social media posts, saying the two brothers will remain united.

At the centre of the alleged tussle is the nomination of corporators. Besides the 227 elected corporators, BMC now has 10 nominated corporators following a 2023 amendment. Political parties will nominate these corporators as per their strength in the house. Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT), which won 65 seats in the recently held civic polls, can nominate three out of 10 corporators, while the BJP, which scored 89, can nominate 4. The Congress, Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena and the AIMIM will choose the remaining three.

According to sources, Raj Thackeray's MNS, which contested the polls in alliance with Sena (UBT), has demanded one out of three nominated seats. The MNS won just six seats in the BMC polls. Uddhav Thackeray has reportedly declined the MNS demand, leading to strain in the alliance, the sources said.

Raj Thackeray's recent meeting with Deputy Chief Minister and Sena chief Eknath Shinde has, meanwhile, sparked rumours of a possible political realignment. The MNS chief had reunited with cousin Uddhav 20 years after he walked out of Sena. 

MNS leader Avinash Abhyankar said that the party recently met its top state functionaries to discuss organisational issues. "Reports from the districts will be sent to Raj Thackeray and then a final decision will be taken," he said in reply to a question on the future of the alliance.

On the issue of nominated corporators, he said, "This is an alliance between two brothers and two parties. Raj Thackeray will decide on whether to claim a seat in Uddhav Thackeray's party's quota. No final decision has been taken. Raj Thackeray and the party's senior leaders will take a call.

Sena (UBT) spokesperson Anand Dubey played down the rift buzz. "Both Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray are intelligent and progressive leaders. They are not people to bicker over small issues. The brothers are united for Marathi pride and will remain so. Some junior MNS leader's sharp remarks or status updates will not lead to a rift in the alliance," he said.