Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday said it was essential for his party chief Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) head Raj Thackeray to forge an alliance, claiming it would give a “new direction to the state”.
Writing in his weekly column Rok Thok in the Sena (UBT) mouthpiece Saamana, Raut also alleged that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had nothing to do with the fight for Maharashtra’s unity and Marathi “asmita” (pride).
“The BJP’s policy is to first loot Mumbai, then make Mumbai a Union Territory, play the game for a separate Vidarbha and finish the existence of Maharashtra,” Raut wrote.
He further claimed that people still remember Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis once carrying placards during agitations in Nagpur that read: Vidarbha is my only state.
Raut warned that if the unity and leadership of the Thackeray cousins did not remain intact, Mumbai would be “swallowed” by “Adani-Lodha” and would one day cease to be part of Maharashtra.
In April, MNS leader Raj Thackeray sparked speculation about a political reconciliation with his cousin Uddhav Thackeray, describing their past disputes as “trivial” and saying it would not be difficult to unite for the greater good of the “Marathi manoos” (Marathi people).
The buzz grew stronger when Uddhav Thackeray said he was ready to set aside minor differences if those working against Maharashtra’s interests were kept away — a veiled dig at Raj hosting Shiv Sena head and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde at his residence.
On 5 July, Uddhav Thackeray declared he and his cousin Raj Thackeray had “come together to stay together” while sharing the political stage with the MNS chief for the first time in nearly two decades, following the BJP-led state government’s withdrawal of two GRs mandating Hindi for Class 1 students.
Raut claimed that the coming together of the Thackeray cousins on 5 July boosted the confidence of the ‘Marathi manoos’.
“This does not mean all issues of Marathi people have been resolved. Their concerns remain. The Thackeray brothers came together against Hindi imposition, but the political alliance is yet to be declared. It is necessary that there is an alliance. Only then will Maharashtra get a new direction,” he wrote.
He asserted that anyone who believes the Thackerays will succumb to any kind of pressure is mistaken.
Raut claimed the unity of the Thackeray brothers had unsettled those in power in Delhi and Maharashtra — a pointed reference to the BJP.
He said Chief Minister Fadnavis “heats up the political atmosphere” by meeting Raj, adding that the MNS president would speak about the matter and “clear the confusion”.
Fadnavis and Raj Thackeray met at a Mumbai hotel last month.
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