The Shiv Sena, which began as a cultural organization to protect and preserve the interests and pride of the Marathi speaking population in Mumbai, is celebrating its Golden jubilee. On this momentous occasion, It is time to review the party’s performance in the past and consider its scope in the future.
After cutting his teeth as a cartoonist of repute in the Free Press Journal, Balasaheb Thackeray began publishing the Marmik periodical in the early 1960s, taking pot shots at the establishment for ignoring the legitimate claims of the sons of the soil in Mumbai city. The campaign he had launched for generating jobs for the Marathi speaking population culminated in the establishment of the Shiv Sena in June 1968. During its chequered history, the Sena registered its best performance during the state assembly elections in 2014 by winning 63 seats on its own. The victory is remarkable as it was secured in the absence of Balasaheb Thackeray; also for once the Sena had contested the elections on its own without entering into an alliance with its traditional political ally, the BJP.
The Sena might have recorded its best performance in 2014, even swimming against the popular Modi wave, but the organization run by Uddhav Thackeray needs to take a note of the fragmented polity of the state and the changing socio-political situation in Maharashtra.
The party had promised to protect and project the ethos of the Marathi speaking population, especially the lower middle class, which finds itself in a desperate situation as the state is swamped with job seeking migrants from other states. It had also promised to protect and ensure the growth of Marathi language as it was being sidelined due to the overweening influence of English and Hindi. Marathi is yet to be recognised as a classical language by the Centre, while the younger generation is finding it difficult to compete for jobs in the service sector, which has expanded exponentially in the last decade as a result of globalisation. The state, despite having world heritage sites like Ajanta, Ellora and Elephanta, has failed to make any mark as a tourist destination because of lack of proper infrastructure.
As against the other regional parties, which have made their presence felt at the national level, the Sena is still lagging behind. The decision to have an alliance with the BJP in the early 80s proved to be beneficial for the Sena in the short term, but it also curtailed Sena’s growth in the state as the seats in the assembly as well as the Lok Sabha elections were always divided. If we compare the Shiv Sena with the other regional parties, which seized power in their respective states on their own, the party needs to do a re-think about its future strategy. The Telugu Desam Party in Andhra Pradesh, the DMK and the AIADMK of Tamil Nadu and Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress have successfully won assembly elections and formed their respective state governments on their own strength. If the Sena has not been able to do so, it is due to its excessive dependence on the BJP. Despite fighting the last assembly elections on its own, it had no option but to join the state government. Initially, the Sena preferred to sit in the opposition but soon it realised that it is difficult to survive in the opposition against three major political parties in the state.
The Sena finds itself in a peculiar situation where it is neither in total control, nor it can play the role of an effective opposition. So, it is adopting Sharad Pawar kind of pressure tactics in opposing the BJP on various issues. Incidentally, while the Sena stands for united Maharashtra, the BJP is for a separate Vidarbha; likewise, the BJP led government in Delhi is committed to nuclear power projects while the Sena is opposing them. Despite such contradictions, the party is trying to increase its leverage in the state by using the government run schemes to benefit the weaker sections of the society.
The Sena is pursuing its agenda of Marathi Manus knowing fully well that it cannot retain power in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation in the coming elections by totally depending on the Marathi speaking population. Since Balasaheb Thackeray’s days, the party has also espoused aggressive Hindutva to secure support from the bilingual Marathi speaking population in the metropolis. In the ensuing days, the Sena will have to decide whether it will remain confined to a small audience of Marathi speaking population or try to articulate the aspirations of a larger segment in Mumbai as well as other parts of the state.
The Sena will have to also sort out confusion over its priorities and decide what kind of relationship it wishes to maintain with the BJP led NDA government in Delhi. It will have to deftly choose issues to convince its larger constituency in the state that it is working for betterment of the region and is not merely sharing the spoils of power with the BJP.
Uddhav Thackeray is also credited with social engineering by trying to broaden the political platform by raising the slogan of “Shiv Shakti-Bhim Shakti;” this has led to a social partnership with the Dalit population in the state, which was otherwise opposed to the Shiv Sena for many socio-political reasons. The party will have to undertake many more steps to ensure that the support from the other social groups in the state does not wane, if it wants to win the elections on its own. RPI leader Ramdas Athawale is not very happy with the Shiv Sena as well as the BJP, as his party is neither a stakeholder in the state, nor at the Centre.
The Sena enhanced its visibility in the rural parts of the state during the last assembly elections by fanning out into several areas where it had no representation earlier. It was merely confined to the urban area known as the Golden Triangle – the Mumbai-Nasik-Pune belt. The party will have to devise ways to consolidate its position not only in the municipal corporations and municipal councils but it will have to make serious efforts to enter the Zillah Parishad and Zillah Panchayat bodies. With the Shard Pawar led Nationalist Congress Party zealously guarding its turf in rural parts of Western Maharashtra, it is a difficult proposition.
The Sena has survived desertions by several senior leaders, including Raj Thackeray, Chhagan Bhujbal, Narayan Rane, Ganesh Naik, and others. It has survived due to the unflinching support of its core — the Shiv Sainiks, who adore Balasaheb Thackeray like a deity. The coming BMC election is going to be a litmus test for the Shiv Sena. Much will depend on how it caters to the needs and respond to the aspirations of a younger generation in Maharashtra.
