Uddhav Thackeray is a lonely man today. He simply could not hold on to the great political legacy of his charismatic father, Balasaheb Thackeray. Today, Uddhav does not even control the Shiv Sena, which has been taken away by the rebel Eknath Shinde, who is fast closing in to get even the leftover remnants of the party from Uddhav. The latest being the defection of six Lok Sabha MPs from Uddhav's faction to Shinde's party.
Once, the Shiv Sena was synonymous with the Thackeray name. Its charismatic founder, Balasaheb Thackeray, had built it from the grassroots. Over a period, the party grew by leaps and bounds, and in 1995, the Shiv Sena had its Chief Minister in Maharashtra with the support of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Balasaheb was among the most well-respected leaders of the country, who, despite never having held any official position, commanded immense power, influence and authority.
At one point in time, in the aftermath of the Godhra train fire that left about 60 karsevaks burnt alive, and the subsequent riots in Gujarat, the BJP was considering replacing the newly appointed Chief Minister Narendra Modi. He intervened and advised the BJP against doing so. Not that it was his word alone that mattered, as Modi got support from a large section of the BJP leadership as well, but Thackeray's word counted and mattered.
Within a decade of Balasaheb's demise, that entire legacy was gone. The Shiv Sena no longer remained under the control of any Thackeray. The party headed by his son, Uddhav Thackeray, now has to use the suffix "Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray" to identify itself.
Uddhav literally got everything on a platter just because he was Balasaheb Thackeray's son. He did not face any challenge or competition. Despite his charismatic cousin Raj Thackeray being very much active and in the reckoning, the senior Thackeray chose his own son to carry forward his political legacy over his nephew. That ultimately led to Raj leaving the Shiv Sena and his uncle to form the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena. Except for acting as a Maharashtrian pressure group, the MNS could never become a challenging political force, as people sided with the Thackerays.
Even after the death of the senior Thackeray in 2012, the Shiv Sena continued to remain a force to reckon with. Moreover, being in alliance with the BJP provided it with additional leverage. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah always had great respect for the senior Thackeray. Uddhav benefited from that goodwill.
However, in 2019, Uddhav bit the bait offered by the wily Sharad Pawar, the master of Machiavellian statecraft. The Shiv Sena and Uddhav Thackeray fought the 2019 Assembly elections in alliance with the BJP. The understanding was that the two parties would share power and the Chief Minister's post for two and a half years each. Uddhav was not willing to concede the Chief Minister's position to the BJP.
Pawar sensed an opportunity and made Uddhav an offer he could not refuse. Pawar assured him of the support of his own Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Congress. Together, they formed the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi. Uddhav was promised the Chief Ministership for the full five-year term. What looked like a Machiavellian masterstroke at the time turned out to be Uddhav's most damaging political decision.
While Uddhav bit the bait, the BJP bit the bullet. The Shiv Sena and Uddhav Thackeray aligning with the Congress and Sharad Pawar's NCP was unprecedented. The Shiv Sena is an unapologetically Hindutva-supporting party, while the Congress claims to be "ultra-secular". Yet, both allied to keep the BJP out of power.
The BJP waited for the right opportunity to strike back. The party knew Uddhav's strengths and weaknesses. His only strength was that he was Balasaheb Thackeray's son. He had little else working in his favour. He remained inaccessible to his own MLAs and ministers. That was partly due to his inherent nature and partly due to his health issues.
By 2022, after less than three years as Chief Minister, Uddhav faced a rebellion. One of his trusted aides, Eknath Shinde, revolted with the support of the majority of the party's legislators and aligned with the BJP. The BJP did precisely what Sharad Pawar and the Congress had done to it. Despite Shinde having fewer MLAs than the BJP, it offered him the Chief Minister's post. As an overwhelming majority of the legislators sided with Shinde, he gained control of the party, along with its official symbol and original name, Shiv Sena.
Today, Uddhav is left with just three Lok Sabha MPs and one Rajya Sabha MP. His party has 20 MLAs and six MLCs. Six of his Lok Sabha MPs recently defected to Shinde's party. There are reports that some MLAs might also follow suit. Uddhav has virtually been left alone. He is now trying to fight a lonely battle to retrieve his position, which is no longer an easy task.
Balasaheb Thackeray had combined the Marahatta identity with Hindutva politics. It turned out to be a formidable combination. Their symbols and icons were the same. But once Uddhav decided to part ways with the BJP, whose ideological foundations lie in Hindutva, and aligned with the Congress and the NCP, he put his cadres in a confusing situation. Shinde offered them the original combination of a strong belief in Marathi identity and an equally strong commitment to Hindutva ideology. Shiv Sena supporters chose Shinde.
While Uddhav is desperately trying to reinvent himself and his party, he has a Herculean task ahead. He lacks both the charisma of his father and his mass following. He has conceded the traditional Shiv Sena support base to Shinde's faction. He is left with very little political space to occupy, as Maharashtra's political landscape is already overcrowded.
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