‘Dasara Melava’ is the biggest display of strength since Eknath Shinde was not defeated Uddhav Thackeray.
Mumbai:
On one side there are supporters with huge tattoos of their leaders, the other has a giant sword in the center and supporters both are arriving in hundreds of buses from all over Maharashtra and the states. other – Shiv Sena’s rival factions today will barely hold Dussehra’s 10km apart rallies in Mumbai.
The shows of strength – preceded by a series of introductory videos – come four months after Eknath Shinde led a mutiny and allied with the BJP to overthrow the government of Uddhav Thackeray.
Both claim to be holding the “real” Dasara Melava rally, a tradition started 56 years ago by party founder Bal Thackeray, whose legacy is now disputed between his son and the political heir Uddhav Thackeray, technically the party chairman, and worker Sena rebel leader Eknath Shinde.
Thackeray team flourished after winning the traditional venue – Shivaji Park – in a court battle. Its supporters told NDTV that “we will not go to the gathering of traitors”. One of them revealed a tattooed back of Uddhav Thackeray and his son Aaditya. “We are the constant supporters of Bala saheb“he said.
A Sena supporter with Thackerays’ face tattooed on his lower back.
But the Shinde camp, which says it “saved” the group from its Hindutva ideology, has set up a spectacle of its own at its site in the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC). Next to the stage, it has a 51 foot long sword.
Aaditya Thackeray dug deep: “Their protest is just a circus.”
However, Mr. Shinde told NDTV: “Given the way that the Shiv Sainiks showed up in large numbers for our protest, I am assured that they have accepted our role and agreed to our direction. I.”
A giant sword beside the stage at Team Shinde’s gathering place.
More than 5,000 buses, in addition to trucks and cars, and a special train will bring supporters, the report said. Police have installed seat belts around both sites since preparations began more than a week ago.
The speeches will likely be as fiery as Bal Thackeray’s year after year until his death in 2012. Since then, Uddhav Thackeray has spoken at the annual event. It was interrupted for two years by Covid.
The signs so far suggest that the rhetoric will be a continuation of what has been said since the May-to-June uprising.
Uddhav Thackeray has attacked not only Team Shinde but also its BJP ally, a party with which Thackeray-led Sena had a long relationship before a bitter split over “leadership issues” following the election. last council appointment.
Eknath Shinde says breaking up with BJP was a mistake. He is expected to repeat that quote, saying that “an alliance of Hindutvas” is “natural”.
The police deployed more than 3,000 officers, in addition to 15,000 officers. Another 1,500 personnel from the State Reserve Police Force (SRPF) and 1,000 Home Guards will also be on duty, in addition to 20 Rapid Response Teams (QRT) and 15 Bomb Detection and Disposal Teams (BDDS). .
