Uddhav Thackeray visits cousin Raj on Ganesh Chaturthi amid alliance talks

SHiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav william makepeace william makepeace thackeray on wed visited his cousin-german and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray’s abode on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi amid the talk of an alliance between the two parties for Mumbai civic polls. This was his first visit since Raj Thackeray moved into his new residence in November 2021. Uddhav Thackeray’s wife, Rashmi, and their son, former minister Aaditya, accompanied him.Raj Thackeray visited Uddhav Thackeray’s residence to wish him on his birthday last month. The two shared the stage in July against the Maharashtra government’s now-scrapped move to make Hindi mandatory as a third language in primary schools. It was the first time the Thackeray cousins were seen together after reports about their reconciliation to consolidate the Marathi vote bank ahead of the civic polls.A Shiv Sena (UBT) leader said the cousins met over lunch at Raj Thackeray’s residence, insisting it was a family visit. “But it assumes significance amid the talks for joining hands for the local body polls. It is unlikely that they discussed politics, but it is a major step in the direction of the alliance,” said the leader.There have been unsuccessful attempts to bring the cousins together in the last two decades. The Sena and MNS’s dismal performances in the 2024 assembly polls triggered fresh calls for reconciliation.The two parties unsuccessfully fought the BEST Workers Credit Society election last week. Uddhav Thackeray is believed to be very keen on an alliance.The MNS did not field a candidate in 2019 as Aaditya Thackeray made his electoral debut by contesting the Worli assembly seat. The Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Mahesh Sawant defeated Raj Thackeray’s son, Amit, in last year’s assembly polls.In April, Raj Thackeray spoke about uniting with his cousin in the interest of Marathis. In a podcast, he said that he had no issues working with Uddhav Thackeray in the undivided Shiv Sena. He said that for a bigger cause, their fights and issues are trivial.At a separate event, Uddhav Thackeray said he was ready to put aside trivial fights provided that those working against Maharashtra’s interests were not entertained. He appealed to everyone to come together for the sake of the Marathi people, three years after former chief minister Eknath Shinde engineered the 2022 split in the Shiv Sena to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led alliance.Raj Thackeray quit the undivided Shiv Sena in January 2006, blaming Uddhav Thackeray for promoting him to do so. He formed the MNS, which won 13 seats in the 2009 assembly elections. The MNS performance has since been dismal. It failed to win any seats in the 2024 assembly polls.The Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena is a key partner of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi. MNS has backed the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.