“How Uddhav Thackeray in MVA is half the leader”, India Today, October 24, 2024:
“Uddhav Thackeray blamed the non-fulfilment of two key demands — the chief minister’s post and a favourable power-sharing arrangement — when his Shiv Sena parted ways with the BJP in November 2019. Five years on, he is at a loss when the two demands are considered. On top of that, he lost control over the Shiv Sena, the party formed by his father. With the Maharashtra Assembly election just a month away, and a seat-sharing deal done, what is the cost that Uddhav Thackeray is paying to be in the Maha Vikas Aghadi?
Although Uddhav held the Maharashtra chief minister’s post for over two-and-a-half years, he finds himself at a disadvantage ahead of the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly election.
His party has been split, and he is no longer the chief of the faction that is officially the Shiv Sena. With this political muscular atrophy, Uddhav Thackeray, probably the strongest CM candidate for the MVA, is no longer the clear choice. It doesn’t seem that he will gain much strength going ahead as his Shiv Sena (UBT) is contesting fewer seats than the unified Sena did in 2019.
Reflecting on the cost Uddhav Thackeray is paying for being part of the MVA, Maharashtra BJP President Chandrashekhar Bawankule said, “The situation is very bad for Uddhav Thackeray. I feel pity as to why Uddhav Thackeray has done this to himself……”
Read the full article at Indiatoday.com
