Mumbai: The air in Maharashtra is thick with anticipation as the annual Dussehra rallies, a stage for political messaging, particularly in election years, are set to unfold on Saturday.
But this year, the event takes on a new dimension as the Shiv Sena, once a united force, is now fractured into two factions, each vying for political dominance in the upcoming state assembly elections.
The historic Shivaji Park, a long-standing venue for the Shiv Sena’s Dussehra rallies since the late 1960s, will host the rally led by Uddhav Thackeray, the former Chief Minister and son of the party’s founder, Balasaheb Thackeray. Meanwhile, his estranged former ally, now Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, will address his supporters at Azad Maidan in south Mumbai.
Both rallies are expected to be elaborate affairs, featuring festivities, food stalls, and culminating in speeches by the two leaders, their pronouncements likely reflecting the escalating political battle for Maharashtra.
The political landscape in Maharashtra is a complex tapestry woven with rival alliances. Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena faction has aligned with the Congress and Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) under the banner of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). Their rival camp, the Mahayuti alliance, comprises Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena faction and the BJP.
The MVA, fueled by a strong showing in the recent Lok Sabha elections, finds itself navigating the turbulence of the Congress’s recent electoral setbacks in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir. Uddhav Thackeray’s faction has criticized the Congress’s handling of its allies, adding another layer of tension to the already fraught coalition.
Meanwhile, the BJP and the Mahayuti alliance have expressed confidence in their ability to return to power, with Eknath Shinde’s faction asserting itself as the true heir to Balasaheb Thackeray’s legacy.
The Dussehra rallies are not the only political stage heating up. Manoj Jarange Patil, a prominent Maratha quota activist, will address a gathering in Beed district. Though he hasn’t made an overt political move yet, his demands for reservation for the Maratha community have placed both the MVA and Mahayuti alliances on high alert.
