Uddhav Thackeray reaffirmed that when it comes to Mumbai, he controls Shiv Sena's legacy
Mumbai:
Uddhav Thackeray may have lost control of the BMC amid a massive challenge from the BJP, but his position as a leader of consequence has remained intact with the Shiv Sena (UBT) winning 74 seats so far and outsmarting Eknath Shinde.
Here's your cheatsheet to this story
- While Shinde made inroads into Mumbai, it could not dent the Thackerays' position as the face of the Marathi Manoos in the financial and entertainment capital. Uddhav Thackeray's MVA ally, the Congress party, decided to go it alone leaving the Thackeray cousins to consolidate their base to put up a fight. The Marathi Manoos in Sena strongholds have shown faith in Uddhav Thackeray and the Shiv Sena (UBT) has managed to show a decent performance.
- The loss of control of the BMC is a big blow to the Shiv Sena (UBT) as the BMC has been the main power centre for the Shiv Sena since its inception. The Sena always maintained that its control over the BMC was the main point of agreement between its allies.
- Eknath Shinde may have walked away with a majority of corporators, but in this election Uddhav Thackeray has reaffirmed that when it comes to Mumbai, he controls the legacy of the Shiv Sena which was founded by his father, Bal Thackeray.
- Uddhav Thackeray has also claimed the Opposition space as Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena failed to win more than the Shiv Sena (UBT). With the Congress decimated, Uddhav Thackeray becomes the de-facto Opposition now.
- The results set the stage for a bipolar contest in Mumbai between the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the BJP. The Shiv Sena (UBT) claims to have a more inclusive Hindutva in contrast to what it calls the "hardline Hindutva" of the BJP.
- With Raj Thackeray remaining a fringe force, the major challenge for Uddhav Thackeray will be expanding his party. Uddhav Thackeray in the past has shown that campaigns like "Mi Mumbaikar" can make the Sena grow beyond its traditional votes in Mumbai city.
- MaMu factor: With the Congress reduced to lower strength, Uddhav Thackeray can look at expanding his support base and one of the ways to do that is to look at Muslim vote as well.
