The Shiv Sena (UBT faction) has got the green signal from the party high command to contest the J&K assembly polls, J&K unit chief Manish Sahni said here on Thursday.
In a statement, he said, "The J&K unit of the Shiv Sena (UBT) has got a green signal from the party high command for participating in the Assembly polls."
He added that the party manifesto was released by party MP Anil Desai after discussions at a meeting with the high command and the J&K unit in Mumbai.
"Party chief Uddhav Thackeray has reportedly expressed concerns about the breach of promise with the people of J&K, violation of the rights of locals, and failure to ensure the safe return of the Kashmiri Pandits to the valley," said Sahni.
“The party state unit was asked to gear up to participate in the Assembly elections with the resolve to restore the rights of the sons of the soil."
He added that once the election dates were announced, the state core committee presented to the high command a list of state-level candidates along with a manifesto reflecting the aspirations of the people.
The names will be announced in Jammu today.
The Shiv Sena last fought in the Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly elections in 2002.
The party fielded some candidates but failed to secure any seats.
Shiv Sena has, in general, little influence in the political landscape of Jammu and Kashmir as compared to other regional and national parties.
It would be interesting to see how Shiv Sena navigates the political landscape this time.
Though the party has been trying to gain a foothold in regional politics for quite some time, its presence has gained impetus with a number of people joining the party.
Still, their prospects for major success seem to be a bit uncertain and perhaps a little too ambitious at this stage.
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