Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray reached Matoshree - house of Shiv Sena UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray -- for the second time in recent months on Saturday, marking his fifth meeting with his cousin this year. The estranged brothers, who have steadily inched closer in recent times, were seen together twice during the day, first at a family function hosted by UBT MP Sanjay Raut, and later at Uddhav Thackeray's Bandra East residence. The back-to-back meetings have once again stirred political chatter about a possible reunion.
The thaw began in June when the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena and Shiv Sena UBT jointly opposed the state government's decision to make Hindi the third compulsory language in schools from Class 1.
What was initially planned as a protest rally eventually turned into a joint programme, where the two leaders shared stage for the first time in nearly two decades.
While Uddhav Thackeray and his faction have openly hinted at a pre-poll alliance for the upcoming civic elections, Raj Thackeray has reportedly advised his party workers to remain patient until things are formalised. His gestures, however, tell another story.
In July, Raj Thackeray's surprise visit to Matoshree on Uddhav's birthday, his first in over a decade, was widely seen as a symbolic return to the Thackeray family home.
Sources have also indicated that both parties have formed a committee of senior leaders to identify constituencies and assess where the organisational strength of each can be best utilised.
The panel is expected to smoothen the process of negotiations, a factor that led to talks stalling on two previous occasions.
At the ground level, workers from both parties have already begun collaborating.
In Nashik, cadres of the MNS and UBT were recently seen marching together. Yet, an early test of this partnership in the BEST credit society elections yielded no success, with the alliance failing to win a single seat.
Party insiders, however, downplay the result, saying the contest carried little political weight compared to the high-stakes BMC elections ahead.
Meanwhile, the BJP, under its newly appointed city president, has launched an aggressive campaign, warning that "Mumbai will get a Mayor named Khan" if UBT returns to power.
The Thackeray-led factions, on the other hand, are expected to build their campaign around Marathi identity and allegations of misgovernance in the city over the past two and a half years.
Recently in the Dussehra rally, both Uddhav Thackeray and Sanjay Raut urged party workers to "see Raj and his party as their own," further signalling that the two camps are preparing to come together once again.
